Babst Calland Attorneys Susanna Bagdasarova and Joseph V. Schaeffer were selected by The Legal Intelligencer as a “2025 Lawyer on the Fast Track, Small/Midsize Winner” in Pennsylvania.
After reviewing the results of nominations for the annual The Legal Intelligencer awards, a judging panel composed of evaluators from all corners of the legal profession and the state selected 12 attorneys as the 2025 Lawyers on the Fast Track, Small/Midsize Winners. This recognition is only given to attorneys under the age of 40 who have demonstrated excellence in four categories: development of the law; advocacy and community contributions; service to the bar; and peer and public recognition.
Susanna Bagdasarova is an associate in the Firm’s Corporate and Commercial and Emerging Technologies groups. Ms. Bagdasarova represents business clients in connection with a broad range of general corporate and commercial law matters, including entity formation, corporate structuring, corporate governance, commercial contracts, and mergers and acquisitions, with a focus on the technology sector. She is a member of the Allegheny County Bar Association and the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Aeronautical and Space Law Section Council and Commission on Women in the Profession. Ms. Bagdasarova is also a member of the board of the Dickinson Law Alumni Society, GlobalPittsburgh, and Radiant Hall. She frequently writes and presents on the Corporate Transparency Act and artificial intelligence. Ms. Bagdasarova is a 2015 graduate, summa cum laude, of The Pennsylvania State University, The Dickinson School of Law.
Joseph Schaeffer is a shareholder in the Firm’s Litigation Group and Co-Chair of the Appellate Practice Group. He focuses his practice on environmental, energy, and complex commercial litigation and has tried these cases before environmental hearings boards, courts, and juries. Mr. Schaeffer also has an active appellate practice and has served as co-counsel or lead counsel in appellate matters before in Pennsylvania and West Virginia State Courts, the United States Courts of Appeals for the Third and Fourth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. He currently serves as the co-chair of the ABA Litigation Section’s Pretrial Practice & Discovery Committee and is the secretary of the Western District of Pennsylvania Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. Mr. Schaeffer volunteers with Neighborhood Legal Services’ Protection from Abuse Program in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and has provided pro bono representation to individuals and organizations, including a national voluntary bar association in amicus curiae filings in the Supreme Court of the United States. He is a 2012 graduate, cum laude, of the University of Pittsburgh Law School.
lists, published by Thomson Reuters. Only a few attorneys from each state are selected to receive the Super Lawyers® and Rising Stars® designation for any given year. The multi-factor selection process includes independent research, peer nominations and evaluations, as well as professional achievement in legal practice. Those selected include: