Celebrating Women's History Month

Court of Common Pleas female judges Amber A. Kraft, Andrea Marceca Strong, President Judge Maria Musti Cook,
Kelley L. Margetas, and Kathleen J. Prendergast

It has been 94 years since the first woman, Sara M. Soffel (Allegheny County), served as a judge in Pennsylvania. The YCBA is incredibly proud of the women on the bench beginning with the first woman York County Court of Common Pleas Judge Sheryl A. Dorney followed by Judge Penny L. Blackwell. The York County Court of Common Pleas elected its first female president judge, Maria Musti Cook, in 2021 making her one of 18 in the state. President Judge Musti Cook also holds the distinction of being the first female president of the YCBA as well as of the YCBF. After 300 years, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania elected its first female Chief Justice Debra Todd and currently, one-half of the high Court’s bench is female.

Celebrating Women’s History Month, we’re highlighting newly elected York County Court of Common Pleas judge, the Honorable Kelley L. Margetas. Judge Margetas assumed her position in 2024 and is one of five female judges currently serving on the Court of Common Pleas Bench. Judge Margetas grew up in a small town near State College and received her Bachelor of Arts from Ursinus College in Politics with minors in History and Business Administration. She received her J.D. from Dickinson School of Law and was admitted to the Bar in 2002.

Prior to ascending to the bench, Judge Margetas spent most of her law career as a prosecutor. Her initial interest in criminal prosecution sparked during her clerkship out of law school with Justice Thomas G. Saylor during his tenure at the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Judge Margetas later served in various roles with the York County District Attorney’s Office, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, and the Adams County District Attorney’s Office.

She offered additional perspective on her legal career and inspiring women in law.

What initially inspired you to pursue a career in law?

I don’t have any family members that are lawyers, and I didn’t know any lawyers growing up, so where the initial idea came from, I’m not exactly sure, but I grew up wanting to find myself in a career where I knew that no matter what happened in my life, I could stand on my own two feet. From what I had known about the legal profession, I felt it was a career that would afford me that opportunity. I viewed the law as a profession where as a female, I would not only be able to sustain a career, but I could also have a family if that was something I decided I wanted in the future.

What has been the highlight of your career?

Looking back, the highlight was probably the two homicide cases that I worked on during my 2013 to 2016 stint at the DA’s Office—one with Tim Barker and one with Dave Sunday. Being able to work on those larger cases with two attorneys who are truly brilliant at what they do, it was a great experience for me. I’ll never forget that.

As a newly elected judge, what aspects of your position are you most excited about?

I am looking forward to gaining experience and exposure to areas of the law that I did not directly practice in my career as an attorney. My duties right now include the family division— juvenile delinquency, protection from abuse matters, and custody matters. While I feel very comfortable, as many of the components of these cases are familiar due to the overlap or similarity in analysis to criminal law, I look forward to gaining overarching experience in this specific area of law and expanding what I already know in different ways.

What challenges do you anticipate facing as a judge, and how do you plan to navigate them?

I’m making decisions that are going to impact the lives of others and especially the lives of children. Every single decision I render for the bench will impact the future of the child, and that is difficult for me. As a judge, you must focus on what is in the best interest of the child. The reality is, the decisions I make, though I think it’s in the best interest, we don’t know how it will impact the child in 10 years, 20 years, and I’m going to look back on the decisions I made as far as how often the child was seeing one parent versus the other parent or the schedule that I set for them and see how that ultimately impacted their life. It’s a lot of mental preparation to fortify your mind because it is a lot of responsibility.

What hobbies or activities do you enjoy outside of your professional life?

I have a four-year-old going on five, so a lot of my free time is spent running places for her, spending time with family, and going on vacation when time allows. Last year, my family traveled to Greece, which is where my husband’s family is originally from. They still have a lot of family over there; it was beautiful.

Is there a female leader who has been a source of inspiration to you throughout your life?

Thinking back, even as a young kid, I knew about Sandra Day O’Connor. She was the first woman appointed onto the United States Supreme Court. That was a big deal. When she was appointed, it was during a time that women were not necessarily prioritizing work, whether their choice or not, but you didn’t see very many women in high roles. I remember thinking, wow, how did she get there? What did she do? As a young child, you see this woman who has the position of authority, power, and respect and it was inspiring to see how she got there. This was at a time before equalizing gender disparities in the courts became a higher priority. While I don’t think that disparity is completely solved, I think it’s come a long way and strides are being taken in the right direction.

What advice would you offer to young women aspiring to enter the legal profession?

You can have it all. Don't let anyone tell you, you can't. You can be educated. You can have a family, whatever that looks like for you. You can work hard, and you can relax hard. The hard work and determination that you put into something will take you where you want to go.