Leah K. Sell
Associate
Leah Sell is an Associate with Leech Tishman, and a member of the firm’s Employment & Labor and Corporate Practice Groups, as well as the Cannabis and LaunchPad Groups. Based in Leech Tishman’s Pittsburgh office, Leah focuses her practice in the areas of employment counseling and defense and corporate transactions.
Leah supports many Pittsburgh area start-ups, business owners, employers and managers in the development and protection of their interests and assets. She enjoys getting to know her clients and their businesses, from conception through exit, working with them as they mature and grow. Leah regularly develops business strategies and plans, forms a variety of entities and assists clients with an array of legal matters as they develop. Experienced in negotiating and drafting, Leah supports clients in asset sales and acquisitions and the development of client and vendor agreements to facilitate business expansion.
Leah regularly counsels private employers in all aspects of the employment relationship, from hiring through termination. She advises clients on employment discrimination issues, workplace and sexual harassment, disability accommodation, Family & Medical Leave Act compliance, employee handbooks, human resource policies and practices, wage and hour issues, use of temporary employees and independent contractors, performance appraisals, workplace investigations, drug and alcohol testing, workplace privacy issues, disciplinary action and termination, reductions in force, employment at-will/wrongful discharge, alternative dispute resolution, employment agreements, restrictive covenants and confidentiality agreements, severance agreements, waivers and releases, and unemployment compensation claims.
Leah also has experience advising employers on issues related to medical cannabis, particularly long-term care facilities.
Leah represents clients in state and federal court, arbitration, mediation and agency proceedings.
Prior to joining Leech Tishman, Leah was an associate at Kisner Law Firm, LLC, a Pittsburgh-based firm assisting clients with employment, business, litigation and real estate matters.
Academics
J.D., Dean’s Scholarship Awardee, University of Pittsburgh School of Law
B.S. in Organizational Communication, cum laude, Ohio University
Admissions
Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania
Experience
Kisner Law Firm, LLC
U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania (Judicial Intern for the Honorable Nora Barry Fischer)
Professional Memberships
Pennsylvania Bar Association (Member, Women in the Profession; Member, Animal Law Committee)
Allegheny County Bar Association (Member, Women in the Law Division Council; Member, Young Lawyers’ Division Wills for Heroes Program; Member, Corporate Banking and Business Law Section)
Women’s Bar Association of Western Pennsylvania (Treasurer; Former Co-Chair of Finance)
Pitt Law Women’s Association (Past President)
Professional Accolades
Super Lawyers
Pennsylvania Rising Star, Pennsylvania Super Lawyers Magazine (2019, 2020)
Certifications & Designations
SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP)
Publications
“Surviving Social Media: An Employer’s Guide,” Lawyers Journal of Allegheny County Bar Association (2016)
“New Ethics Rule Clears the Air On Med-marijuana Question,” Lawyers Journal of Allegheny County Bar Association (2016)
University of Pittsburgh Law Review (Senior Managing Editor)
JURIST (Associate Editor)
Community Involvement
Humane Animal Rescue