Donald E. Machen, DMD, MD, JD, MBA, CFA, practices law and serves as a mediator and arbitrator in Florida and Pennsylvania, as well as nationally. He has mediated and/or arbitrated countless matters involving business, healthcare and financial issues, many of which were sophisticated and complex in nature. Judge Machen is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a member of the CFA Institute (formerly AIMR), Pittsburgh Society of Financial Analysts and the CFA Society of South Florida.
Previously, he spent 19 years as a trial court judge and four years as a magistrate judge with the City of Pittsburgh. Prior to being appointed to the trial court bench, he was appointed by the Allegheny County civil trial court to serve as chief arbitrator in healthcare matters that were identified as complex. He was appointed as a Judge by Governor Tom Ridge in 1995. That year he was elected to a 10-year term, and was later re-elected to a second term. He was also associated with the international law firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart, (now K&L Gates) in its Pittsburgh office, concentrating on commercial and professional negligence defense litigation, securities and tax law.
He is managing principal at Risk Management Consultants of South Florida, LLC, a professional negligence risk management and financial analysis and risk modeling consultancy. He is a frequent lecturer in the areas of professional negligence law, practice management and risk management. Dr. Machen developed and implemented a risk management auditing protocol for professional practices to eliminate medical error and reduce and/or eliminate professional negligence in over 600 offices.
For 25 years, Professor Machen was an Adjunct Professor of Law at Duquesne Law School, and currently serves an Associate Professor of Orthodontics at both Case Western University Dental School and the University of Pittsburgh Dental School. Dr. Machen was Editor of the Legal Aspects of Orthodontic Practice column in the American Journal of Orthodontics, authoring professional articles on risk management and law in that journal and in the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics. He has authored a Forms and Correspondence Manual on Risk Management, and has co-authored the book entitled, Managing Risk in Orthodontic Practice. Dr. Machen was a principal presenter at the first Risk Management Teleconference to 2,500 orthodontists nationwide.
Law Admissions:
- Admitted State Jurisdictions: Florida and Pennsylvania
- Admitted Federal Jurisdictions: United States Supreme Court, United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida and United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
Certifications:
- Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator and Appellate Mediator
- Florida Supreme Court Qualified Arbitrator
Background:
- Born in Pittsburgh, PA
- Duquesne University School of Law, J.D., Magna Cum Laude; Law Review
- The University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine, D.M.D., M.S.D., and certificates in pediatric dentistry and orthodontics
- The University of Health Sciences, M.D.
- The University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, M.B.A.
Affiliations, Memberships and Boards:
- CFA Institute (formerly AIMR)
- Pittsburgh Society of Financial Analysts
- CFA Society of South Florida
- Omicron Kappa Upsilon
- American Board of Orthodontics, Diplomate
- College of Diplomates, Fellow
- American College of Dentists, Fellow
- American Association of Orthodontists, Risk Management Committee
- The United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania
- The Jewish National Fund
- Parental Stress Center
- Commissioner, Pittsburgh Planning Commission
- The University of Pittsburgh Scholarship Committee
- The Prison Board of Allegheny County
- The Attorney General of Pennsylvania’s Advisory Board on Law and Medicine
