Uniontown native donates to Pitt law school
John P. Gismondi has a history of donating money to help others, including those in his native Uniontown. And, since many of the University of Pittsburgh’s students come from western Pennsylvania, the grant he gave to the university’s law school may benefit someone future lawyers from Fayette County.
The university will use Gismondi’s grant to help start a program for students who want to become trial attorneys. The John P. Gismondi Civil Litigation Certificate Program is one of the few of its kind in the country, according to school officials.
“Through an extremely generous gift from John and with his active support and guidance, the school of law has set out to build one of the richest educational programs in civil litigation,’ said David Herring, dean of the law school.
He noted that the other two law schools with programs of that type are in smaller cities, and he thinks this one located in a major metropolitan area will be a boost to the school.
“Everybody competes for good-quality students, and we are hoping that this program, unique to a metropolitan university law school, will make Pitt stand out in the crowd, at least for those law school applicants who want to be trial lawyers,’ said Gismondi. “Students are always interested in getting more practical experience, and if we can give them some basic training in trial work, that will make them more attractive to potential employers, and it will also give them a little head start on their career.”
Gismondi said the program is meant to give law students real-world experience for those who want to be courtroom attorneys. Most law schools don’t have the time or the ability to provide that experience to students, he said, and the program also will be different in that practicing trial attorneys from western Pennsylvania, not law professors, will teach the courses. “Real world experience is important in almost any endeavor,” said Gismondi.
The program will offer courses that are more focused, he said, noting that “law schools are usually not that specialized.’
Gismondi, who has been teaching at the law school since 1985, said the program will help not only prospective trial attorneys but also local law firms in hiring lawyers from the school.
Young people from the area will benefit from the program, as most of the university’s students come from the region, and over the years numerous attorneys from Fayette County have graduated from the law school, he said.
This is not the first time Gismondi has donated money to help others.
He funded the James F. Gismondi Learning Center, named after his father, in the Uniontown Library. The purpose of the center is to benefit children in Uniontown and Fayette County who do not have access to computers in their homes.
“I’ve been fortunate in my career to the extent that I can help other people. That’s something that I get some satisfaction from,” he said. “There are a lot of underprivileged kids in the area.’
The center has also had a program to teach senior citizens in the area how to use computers, he said.
“I think that 90 percent of what you achieve is a product of the foundation or the roots that you have,” Gismondi said.
His mother, Leda Gismondi, still lives in Uniontown, in the same house where he grew up. He said his parents were the most important element in his success.
Gismondi hasn’t forgotten his roots, as he visits Uniontown “pretty regularly” and has many friends in the area. He considers himself an “avid follower” of Uniontown Area High School sports teams, especially the basketball teams that have made it to the PIAA Class AAAA championship games two of the past three years.
He graduated from Uniontown High School in 1971, was president of his class and still attends all his high school reunions.
“People in Uniontown are good people, everyday people. You learn good values in that sort of environment,” he said.
After completing his undergraduate work at the University of Pittsburgh, Gismondi graduated from the university’s law school in 1978. He worked as a law clerk for Judge Gustave Diamond in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania from 1978 to 1981.
Since then, Gismondi has worked in private practice, representing victims in personal injury litigation or their families. He was elected president of the Allegheny County Bar Association in 1995 and served as president of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association, Western Pennsylvania Chapter, in 1988.
He served as chairman of the Trial Advocacy Foundation of Pennsylvania from 1987 to 1990, and he also is a member of the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County.
In addition, Gismondi has written articles for several legal journals about personal injury law and often speaks at conferences and seminars about personal injury law or courtroom skills.