James Benedek is the Visiting Assistant Clinical Professor for the Sikov Elder Law Clinic. Benedek is an attorney dedicated to serving older adults and their families in elder law. His practice focuses on estate planning, Medicaid eligibility, probate and estate administration, and estate litigation.
Benedek is admitted to practice law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the State of Florida, and he is a member of both the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) and Pennsylvania Association of Elder Law Attorneys (PAELA). Benedek is also a member of the Allegheny County Bar Association – Elder Law Section and the Pennsylvania Bar Association – Elder Law Section.
Benedek earned his BA in Politics, graduating summa cum laude from The Catholic University of America with minors in Philosophy and Theology and Honors in the Humanities and Theology. He was also inducted and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Benedek received his JD from Duquesne University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, where he built on his passion for helping the aging community as the student manager for the Wills and Healthcare Decisions Clinic. In addition to this, Benedek worked as a Research Assistant, researching the Elder Justice Initiative. During law school, he was recognized with the CALI Excellence for the Future Awards in Torts, Constitutional Law, and Pretrial Civil Litigation. He was honored with the Distinguished Student Award for academic excellence and outstanding service to the School of Law, one of the prestigious awards given to graduating law students at Duquesne University.
Benedek has devoted his career to assisting the aging population. Prior to joining the University of Pittsburgh, he worked at the National Headquarters of AARP in the Campaign Strategies Division in Washington, DC, as an intern. This is where he truly saw the need for assistance for our country’s seniors. He brought his passion back to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, working for an elder law firm in client outreach and eventually in his practice of elder law.
