Joseph A. Pellegrino

Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice

• Massachusetts
• U.S. District Court District of Massachusetts

Professional & Bar Association Memberships

• Massachusetts Bar Association
• Hampden County Bar Association

Education

LL.M., Boston University School of Law, 1978
Major: Taxation

J.D., New England School of Law, 1962
B.A., Boston College, 1958
Cum Laude
Major: History
Minor: Philosophy

As a former Assistant Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Judge Pellegrino served as the Chief of the Western Massachusetts Division of the Attorney General’s office. He served under two Attorney Generals, Attorney General Robert H. Quinn and Attorney General Francis X. Bellotti. As an Assistant Attorney General, Judge Pellegrino handled both criminal and civil cases. He represented Massachusetts state agencies and their employees in civil litigation, including, but not limited to, the areas of tort, contract, eminent domain, consumer law, governmental law, environmental law, and civil rights law.

The Massachusetts state agencies he represented included the Department of Public Commission, the Massachusetts Trial Court and its judges, the Board of Registration of Medicine, the Board of Registration of Barbers, the Massachusetts Historical Commission, Holyoke Community College, Springfield Technical Community College, Greenfield Community College, Westfield State College, the Massachusetts Retirement Board, and the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. He also sat at the Attorney General’s designee on the Massachusetts Board of Appeals on Motor Vehicle Liability Policies and Bonds.

Judge Pellegrino also served as a Prosecutor for the City of Springfield, Massachusetts, as an adjunct faculty member at Holyoke Community College where he taught Business Law and Criminal Procedure and as a guest lecturer and speaker at other colleges, universities, and charitable and civic associations.

Judge Pellegrino’s presentations and writings include Family Law Advocacy, Substance Abuse and the Courts, Adolescent Adoption, Ethical Dilemmas in Nursing, Estate Planning and Taxation, Legal Considerations in Business Formation, Bench-Press Relations, Timing of Trials, Care and Protection For Children, Fighting Crime, Weapons In The Classroom, and Community Mediation.

Judge Pellegrino also serves and has served in various capacities on boards and committees both in the private and public sector. He serves or has served as a Director and an Incorporator (presently) of the Westfield State College Foundation, a member of the Criminal Justice Advisory Board and at Springfield Technical Community College (presently), a member of the Board of Directors of Aids allies, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Leukemia Society of America, a member of the Board of Director of the Italian Cultural Center, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Springfield Boys and Girls Club. He also served as a member of the MA Judicial Conduct Committee, the Jury Management Advisory Committee, and the Committee for Uniform Rule for Court Interpreters.

Judge Pellegrino has received numerous awards and has been recognized for exceptional service by state, city, and private agencies. For his service in the Attorney General’s office, he was recognized a Distinguished Service Award. In addition, recognition has been presented to him by the Western Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court for service to the children and families of Hampden County, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court for his service on the MA Jury Management Advisory Committee, the Springfield Police Department for years of dedicated service, the National and Springfield Unico Club, the Springfield Boy’s and Girl’s Club, and the Hampden County Bar Associated for his service as a judge at the Massachusetts Trial Court.