Contact Information

Biography

Richard Gaffney is an associate professor and the Director of Advanced Analytics, Director of the JD/MBA Joint Degree Program and Director of the Business Essentials for Lawyers Micro-credential Program at the Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University. Professor Gaffney teaches courses in commercial law and taxation, including courses in Contract Law, Sales and Leases of Goods, Federal Income Taxation, and Remedies at Law & In Equity. He has also taught courses in Labor Law and Legal Research and Writing. From 2006 to 2020, he created and directed the School of Law's nationally-ranked Bar Studies Program.

Before accepting an appointment at Duquesne in 2006, Gaffney practiced law with the Aluminum Company of America and private law firms in Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, where he concentrated his practice in commercial transactions, energy law, and employment litigation. He has been licensed as an attorney since 1991 and is admitted to the Supreme Court of the United States, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and the United States District Courts for the Western and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania.

Gaffney holds a B.A. in journalism from the Pennsylvania State University, with a minor in nuclear engineering, an MBA in finance, cum laude, from the Duquesne University Graduate School of Business, and a J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he was on the editorial boards of the University of Pittsburgh Law Review and the Journal of Law and Commerce. He was elected to and is a member of the Order of the Coif.

Gaffney enjoys playing guitar and piano, and coaching Little League baseball. He lives in Sewickley with his beautiful wife, talented son and miniature schnauzer. He is an active member of his church's worship team and parish council, and he serves on boards and as counsel for several other non-profit organizations.

Education

  • J.D., magna cum laude, University of Pittsburgh School of Law
  • M.B.A., cum laude, Duquesne University Graduate School of Business
  • B.A., Journalism, The Pennsylvania State University

Areas of Expertise

  • Contract Law
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Employment Law
  • Federal Income Taxation

Profile Information

About

FALL
Contracts I
Sales
Remedies at Law & in Equity

SPRING
Contracts II
Sales
Basic Federal Income Taxation
Financial Toolkit for Lawyers

SUMMER
Sales

Commentary to the upcoming publication, WHEN THE LEVEES BREAK: EXAMINING THE FAILINGS OF OUR SECURITIES MARKETS, Lexington Books, Jena Martin, Associate Dean for Innovation and Global Development and Professor, West Virginia University College of Law(forthcoming 2016) (with Karen Kunz), 2017 Mon River Colloquium Conference, Friday, March 24, 2017 at West Virginia University College of Law, Morgantown, West Virginia (March 24, 2017)

Sexual Harassment: What Trainers Need to Know 
Annette Cremo and Richard Gaffney,  Sexual Harassment: What Trainers Need to Know  (1999).

Pay Attention! The Americans With Disabilities Act Amendments Act & Law Schools - Accommodations for Law Students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Richard Gaffney Jr., Pay Attention! The Americans With Disabilities Act Amendments Act & Law Schools - Accommodations for Law Students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

The Economics and Constitutionality of Pennsylvania's Third Generation of Anti-takeover Legislation, Journal of Law and Commerce, Volume 10, Issue 1 (Fall 1990)
Sexual Harassment: What Trainers Need to Know, Annette Cremo and Richard Gaffney
American Society for Training and Development Info-line (Issue 9912) (December 1999)
Richard C. Gaffney, President Biden Signs $1.9T American Rescue Plan, Duquesne Business Law Informant
 (March 26, 2021), https://dbliblog.com/?p=347
Richard C. Gaffney, Jr., ‘Cash Back' Rewards as Taxable Gross Income: The Curious Case of Konstantin Anikeev, 
Oxford Business Law Blog, (April 2, 2021), https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/business-law-blog/blog/2021/04/cash-back-rewards-taxable-gross-income-curious-case-konstantin

Bar Admission Requirement for Character and Fitness: Is There an Efficient Way to Get Students Certified?, American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, Annual Conference, Seattle, WA (Mar. 17, 2011)

Character and Fitness: Ethical Issues for Legal Education and the Practice of Law, Duquesne University School of Law Continuing Legal Education Series, Pittsburgh, PA (Aug.18, 2011)

Writing Effective Answers to Pennsylvania Bar Exam Essay Questions, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2010 - 2013)

Writing Effective Answers to New Jersey Bar Exam Essay Questions, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2010 - 2012)

Introduction to the Pennsylvania Bar Examination, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2010 - 2013)

Introduction to the New Jersey Bar Examination, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2010 - 2013)

Distinctions in Pennsylvania Property Law, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2010 - 2012)

Distinctions in Pennsylvania Contract and Sales Law, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2010 - 2012)

The Pennsylvania Essay Workshop, Themis Bar Review Lectures Series (2011 - 2013)

Pay Attention! The Americans With Disabilities Act Amendments Act & Law Schools - Accommodations for Law Students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, (Work in process)

Richard Gaffney Jr., School District Obligations Under the New Federal Healthcare Law, presentation at Pittsburgh Regional Food Service Directors (Dec. 5, 2014).

Richard Gaffney, Jr., EEO Compliance Training: Workplace Harassment, presentation to Southmoreland School District (January 19, 2018)

Richard Gaffney Jr., Non-profit Board of Directors Orientation, presentation at School Nutrition Association of Pennsylvania Board of Directors annual Meeting (July 28, 2019)