Centre County Public Defender Admitted to Bar of U.S. Supreme Court

A Centre County public defender has earned a prestigious professional distinction.

First Assistant Public Defender Lora Rupert was admitted to the Bar of the U.S. Supreme Court in November, an achievement that Chief Public Defender David Crowley said is held by roughly 1% of the 1.3 million lawyers in the country.

To be admitted to the Supreme Court Bar, attorneys must have at least three years of good standing in their state’s highest court, demonstrate good moral and professional character and receive support from at least two unrelated members of the bar, according to the American Bar Association.

Admission not only conveys the ability to argue before the nation’s highest court, it also provides members with special seating to observe oral arguments and decision announcements and access to the court’s library.

Rupert, who is also an adjunct professor at Penn State DIckinson Law, was recognized for the accomplishment at Tuesday’s Centre County Board of Commissioners meeting.

“This really indicates the level of training and education and work that you’ve done, just a really high level of expertise,” Commissioner Amber Concepcion said. “And I think when we’re thinking about the value of a public defender’s office and representing people who are really in need, … I guess I just feel proud to be associated with a county that has such a high degree of expertise in our public defender’s office.”

Rupert, who joined the Centre County Public Defender’s Office in 2018, credited Crowley and her colleagues for her professional growth.

“I would be remiss not to say I didn’t get here but for Attorney Crowley. He has truly made me into the attorney that I am,” Rupert said. “We have a strong leadership in our office. We have the best team of support, our paralegals, investigator, our administrative staff. It takes a village to do the type of work that we do and I would be remiss not to give them the credit that they deserve because they are right along with me the entire way.”

In addition to representing clients, Rupert serves as second-in-command of the public defender’s office and supervises and trains all assistant public defenders.

Rupert said she appreciated that the county has allowed the office “to evolve into an office that has the staff that we need to be able to support the clients that we represent,” noting that in the last year it added a case worker.

“She is such a great asset to our office and that is one luxury that we have in our office that most public defenders do not have,” Rupert said. “So with the addition of that, our office is able to constantly evolve and represent not only the clients but the rehabilitative needs of the residents of Centre County.”

Commissioner Steve Dershem praised Rupert and her colleagues in the public defender’s office, which includes six attorneys, for their dedication to their work.

“The one reason that I think your office is incredibly successful is the dedication that you have to the goals and to the citizens of our community,” Dershem said. “I know that there are lots of probably sexier jobs out there in the legal world to aspire to. It’s a noble one when you have the opportunity to represent those who otherwise may not have the level of representation that they deserve. And that is an incredible dedication.

“It’s not lost on us, and we really appreciate the job you all do, the folks that you serve. And the role that you play in our judicial system.”

Added Chair Mark Higgins, “It’s noble calling. You’re defending people who are in some ways essentially defenseless, and that takes a lot of guts and a lot of courage.”

District Attorney Bernie Cantorna and Assistant District Attorney Matthew Metzger have also previously been admitted to the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States.