<div style="float: right; width: 305px; margin: 10px;"><img src="/site/files/oldnewsfiles/epsteinaward300px.jpg" width="300" height="394" alt="epsteinaward300px"></div>Widener Law congratulates Professor <a href="/Academics/Faculty/ProfilesDe/EpsteinJules.aspx">Jules Epstein</a> for being named to a prestigious list of Philadelphia-area attorneys who are tops among their peers.<br><br>Epstein was recently named 2014 “Lawyer of the Year” for criminal defense, non-white collar, for the region. He was selected by vote of fellow lawyers.<br><br>The honor came in “Best Lawyers® 2014,” a special supplement published with <i>The Philadelphia Inquirer</i> and the <i>Wall Street Journal</i>. Attorneys nominated and voted on their colleagues. The publication lists six magazine pages of best lawyers, by specialty, with multiple attorneys recognized under each specialty.<br><br>From there, the publication narrowed the specialty lists to just one attorney under each heading – with the distinction “Lawyer of the Year.” Honorees earned that distinction by having the highest peer rating among all those recognized in a specialty.<br><br>“My years in the courtroom as a trial attorney are long gone, but I am able on the occasional case to continue work as a pro bono or court appointed attorney, particularly in the areas of eyewitness identification, homicide, and the death penalty,” Epstein said. “Much more of my 'work' is speaking with and advising lawyers across Pennsylvania on legal issues, strategies and tactics.  It is a tremendous honor to be recognized for this work by peers, especially as the Philadelphia region has a number of tremendously gifted attorneys.”<br><br>Epstein joined the Widener Law Delaware-campus faculty in 2003 and teaches criminal law, criminal procedure and evidence courses. He serves as director of the school’s <a href="/Academics/Institutes/AdvocacyandTechnologyInstitute.aspx">Taishoff Advocacy, Technology and Public Service Institute</a>. He came from the highly respected Philadelphia criminal defense and civil rights firm of Kairys, Rudovsky, Messing &amp; Feinberg, LLP, where he was a partner.<br><br>A 1978 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania School of Law, Epstein began his legal career with the Defender Association of Philadelphia. He was an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania from 1988 through 2006. He has authored dozens of articles and book chapters and lectured around the country, with his work concentrating in recent years on capital cases, eyewitness and forensic issues. He was the first member of the university faculty based on Widener’s Delaware campus to receive the prestigious Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching in 2011.<br><br>Epstein has taught death penalty law nationally to judges and attorneys and continues to handle capital cases pro bono at the appellate and post-conviction stages. He serves as faculty for the National Judicial College, where he teaches judges courses in advanced evidence and capital case law.  He was named early this year to the National Commission on Forensic Science, administered by the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Commerce National Institute of Standards and Technology.<br><br>More information about Best Lawyers is available at <a href="http://www.bestlawyers.com">bestlawyers.com</a>.<br><br><a href="/About/standarddisclaimer.aspx">Standard Disclaimer for External Links</a><br>