June S. Schulberg, a formidable family law attorney, stood her ground when Judge Lawrence Kaplan admonished her for submitting a brief longer than the 10-page limit.
“She did not know how to back down,” said Margaret “Peggy” Joy, a lawyer who still recalls Ms. Schulberg’s reply:
“‘Well, judge, if you stopped reading at Page 10, that’s your loss. You missed the best part.’ He just moved right on. You could have heard a pin drop,” Ms. Joy said.
Ms. Schulberg, who recently fell and broke her hip, suffered medical complications and died Saturday at age 87 in Delray Medical Center in Delray Beach, Fla.
A Pittsburgh native who grew up in Squirrel Hill, Ms. Schulberg rose from an executive secretary to partner in the firm of McCarthy, McDonald, Schulberg & Joy. She was the first woman president of the prestigious Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County in 1995.
Ms. Schulberg, a divorced mother of two young boys, worked full time and took night classes, earning a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1965. Her boss at Crown Aluminum let her leave work a little early to attend school, said her son Howard. His mother inspired him to go to law school and seek a leadership role in his profession, he said.
“She showed me the value of being involved in the bar, which ultimately led to me being president of the ACBA,” said Mr. Schulberg of Thornburg. His older brother, Arnold of Delray Beach, Fla., planned to get a master’s degree in psychology but became a lawyer, too, when their mother offered to fund half of his education.
Ms. Schulberg was one of four women who earned a law degree from Duquesne University in 1969 and the first female attorney hired at the National Labor Relations Board in Pittsburgh. From 1970 to 1973, she was chief deputy coroner to Dr. Cyril Wecht at the Allegheny County Coroner’s office. During that time, she also worked for the law firm of Sikov & Love and practiced with Berger & Kapetan. In 1976, she opened her own practice.
Smart and well-prepared, Ms. Schulberg was a petite advocate who dressed stylishly. As a mentor to younger women lawyers she “was always willing to help someone up the ladder behind her,” Ms. Joy said.
Attorney Carol McCarthy needed a job when she moved to Pittsburgh in 1975 and sent hundreds of letters to local lawyers.
“June was the only one who responded,” Ms. McCarthy said, adding that her future law partner took her out to lunch and later offered to lend her money if she needed it to start a law office.
An avid reader, traveler and theatergoer, Ms. Schulberg enjoyed socializing at an annual outing at Seven Springs Resort where immediate and extended family members played golf.
“She bought me my first membership at a golf club,” Howard Schulberg said, adding that it is still his favorite pastime.
For 35 years, Ms. Schulberg often spent December and April at a second home in St. Maarten, the Dutch side of a Caribbean island. On a trip to the former Soviet Union in 1981, she befriended Pittsburgh lawyer Frederick Frank. The two were part of a small delegation of Pittsburghers trying to help Soviet Jews emigrate to Israel.
“She was tough, but when you needed her, she was there for you 200 percent,” Mr. Frank said.
Besides her sons, Ms. Schulberg is survived by two grandchildren. There will be no funeral service or visitation. A celebration of her life will be held at a later date.
The family suggests contributions to ACLU Foundation of Pennsylvania, P.O. Box 60173, Philadelphia, Pa. 19102 or the American Kidney Fund, 11921 Rockville Pike, Suite 300, Rockville, Md. 20852.
Marylynne Pitz: mpitz@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1648 or on Twitter: @mpitzpg
First Published: November 10, 2016, 5:00 a.m.
