Anne Schmidt Frankel
Anne Schmidt Frankel
1001 Conshohocken State Road
STE 1-515
West Conshohocken, PA 19428
Biography
Anne Schmidt Frankel is a Member in the Philadelphia office of Burns White, concentrating her practice on defending individual providers, healthcare institutions, care facilities, and non-profits against professional and general liability claims. She also represents these clients in premises liability, corporate liability, and employment matters. She has successfully defended catastrophic injury, wrongful death, and survival actions on behalf of these clients in depositions, contentious discovery hearings, and at mediation and trial. She has experience handling complex discovery matters for organizations with a national presence in both state and federal courts.
Ms. Frankel has focused her practice on providing legal guidance and advocacy for a diverse array of human services organizations, healthcare facilities, and care centers. Her representations of these clients include a wide range of representative matters beyond professional liability litigation, including slip and fall claims, grand jury subpoenas, criminal investigations, employment disputes, and disruptive physician actions. She also serves as outside counsel to these organizations in the development of policies, in particular quality management and peer review policies. She is a member of the firm’s Rapid Response and Incident Management Team, a group of skilled attorneys who serve as the front line of defense and support in protecting clients facing police or regulatory investigations, including allegations of sexual misconduct, physical abuse, and neglect, child abuse and inappropriate touching. Ms. Frankel actively works with clients throughout the investigative process and continues representation in litigation if warranted.
Prior to joining Burns White, Ms. Frankel worked as an Associate at a civil litigation and medical malpractice defense firm in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, where she successfully protected privileged client information from discovery through her knowledge and application of the Peer Review Protection Act, as well as assisted with pre-trial preparations and expert retention. In addition, Ms. Frankel clerked for the Hon. Richard F. Wells, J.S.C., of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Camden County in the juvenile and criminal court. She brings her experience in criminal court to cases involving pro se litigants and underlying claims of criminal conduct.
A graduate of Widener University, Ms. Frankel received a Juris Doctor in 2008 and obtained a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice, cum laude, from Northeastern University in 2005. While attending Northeastern University, Ms. Frankel was a Division I scholarship athlete for the Women’s Varsity Rowing Team.
She was previously involved with Breastcancer.org’s Young Friends Committee and Montgomery County Child Advocacy Project as a Board Member and Child Advocate. She has a personal passion for advocacy for children with sensory differences and special needs in an educational setting but has chosen to keep those specific efforts and contributions private.
Ms. Frankel is actively involved in the Women’s Initiative at Burns White and previously oversaw efforts of the Philadelphia office. She is the mother of three young children, and lives in the Greater Philadelphia with her husband and golden retriever.
Credentials
Areas of Law
- Medical Malpractice Defense
- Premises Liability
- Corporate Liability
- Employment Practices Liability
Education
- Widener University School of Law (J.D., 2008)
- Northeastern University (B.S., cum laude, 2005)
Bar and Court Admissions
- Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Accolades & Involvement
Honors/Awards
- Recognized as a “Lawyer on the Fast Track” by The Legal Intelligencer, 2022
Community Involvement
- JAFCO FamilyMatters
- Committee Member for Spring Into Summer Luncheon, 2022
- Montgomery Child Advocacy Project (MCAP)
- Board of Directors (2013-2015)
- Certified Advocate Attorney
- Breastcancer.org
- Young Friends Committee, Chair
- 2014 Rock the Ribbon, Co-Chair
- Mission Kids 2013 Annual Event Committee
- Anti-Defamation League, Glass Leadership Fellow (2009-2010)
Presentations
- Burns White Employment Law Seminar, April 2019
Publications
- Author, Illegal Action As A Bar To Recovery: In Pari Delicto In The Healthcare Malpractice Context, Burns White Torts Illustrated, September 2023
- Co-Author, “Crisis Management: Is Your Organization Prepared to Execute a Rapid Response?” Burns White Insights, June 2019
Representative Matters
- Defended nonprofit organization against claims of sexual harassment made by a temporary worker of a protected class and successful negotiated a confidential settlement with contribution from codefendants.
- Represented nonprofit healthcare organization in negotiating separation with employees placed on extended administrative leave due to a patient injury and resulting criminal investigation.
- Provided outside general counsel services to a confidential nonprofit healthcare organization regarding employment policies and practices generally and with regard to specific incidents as they arise.
Secured a dismissal for franchising organization in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas based on the statute of limitations expiration by Motion for Summary Judgment. - Secured a dismissal for franchising organization in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas at Preliminary Objection Stage based on legal insufficiency.
- Successfully obtained dismissal of an abuse/neglect and professional liability claim, during the motion for summary judgment phase, for a residential care facility in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas (Decision Upheld on Appeal)
- Secured favorable confidential settlement at trial in Lackawanna County for a school before the close of Plaintiff’s case and the presentation of Defendant’s Motion for Nonsuit in a case of abuse and negligent supervision.
- Obtained defense verdict in Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas for a hospital as second chair trial counsel. Plaintiff alleged the death of the patient was caused by an anaphylactic reaction with alleged improper emergency intubation.
- Successfully obtained a low-value confidential settlement after a favorable outcome on Motion for Summary Judgement in Luzerne County for an ambulance provider. Plaintiff alleged improper (endotracheal) intubation of a patient during an emergency response for cardiac arrest.
- Obtained dismissal of abuse/neglect claim at Motion for Summary Judgment phase for staffing agency. (Decision Upheld on Appeal)
- Successfully negotiated several pre-suit and early suit settlements in professional liability, abuse, and neglect cases for residential care facilities, schools, and mental health providers to mitigate potential exposure to reputational and financial interests.
