On Tuesday, September 9, 2025, the Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board (JCB) charged Judge Scott DiClaudio with violating the code of judicial conduct by seeking to affect the outcome of a case that was being handled by another judge. According to the board, Judge DiClaudio “engaged in conduct that was so extreme that it brought the judicial office itself into disrepute.”
Judge DiClaudio’s attorney, Michael van der Veen, along with his co-counsel, have vehemently denied the allegations against him, stating that “Judge DiClaudio has an excellent reputation for fairness and impartiality throughout the bar and his brethren,” and that “He denies any violation of the Pennsylvania Constitution or the Code of Judicial Conduct.”
Allegations of Improper Influence
The case stems from an incident that resulted in DiClaudio being placed on administrative leave. At that time, Common Pleas Court Judge Zachary Shaffer reported to his supervisor that DiClaudio had implied that he should impose a favorable sentence on one of his defendants.
Shaffer and his law clerk had reportedly stopped by DiClaudio’s chambers to buy t-shirts supporting Shay’s Steaks, the cheesesteak shop owned by DiClaudio’s wife. After the transaction, DiClaudio allegedly asked to speak privately with Shaffer, showed him a slip of paper with his courtroom number and the name of defendant, Dwayne Jones, and remarked, “I heard you might do the right thing anyway,” before discarding the note. Jones is a friend of rapper Meek Mill, with whom the the board claims Judge DiClaudio is socially and professionally acquainted.
Jones was scheduled to be sentenced by Shaffer for illegally possessing a gun that was connected to a fatal shooting.
Following these events, the board petitioned the Court of Judicial Discipline to suspend DiClaudio without pay pending trial. Melissa Norton, the board’s chief counsel, stated that DiClaudio would have the opportunity to respond and present his case, but the disciplinary process could take up to a year. van der Veen responded that DiClaudio is “eager for the process to preserve his reputation.”
Broader Disciplinary Disputes
This is not the first time Judge DiClaudio has clashed with the Judicial Conduct Board. Earlier in 2025, the board also began investigating whether he misused his position to promote his wife’s cheesesteak business, Shay’s Steaks, a controversy that drew headlines as “Cheesesteak Gate.”
DiClaudio later supplemented his filing with two addendums. In the second, filed in mid-July, he questioned whether Norton might be a “serial complainant” and demanded disclosure of her role in past proceedings against him.
A July Law.com article spotlighted DiClaudio’s ongoing battle with the Judicial Conduct Board. The piece noted that DiClaudio continued to seek dismissal of disciplinary proceedings tied to both the cheesesteak allegations and the influence claims that later surfaced in September.
Through those filings, DiClaudio and his attorney argued that the Judicial Conduct Board may have violated its own rules by initiating an investigation without a formal complaint.
The Board’s Response
The JCB responded that DiClaudio’s arguments misinterpreted its operating procedures, which do not have the force of law. On July 23, 2025, the JCB filed a response, stating that litigants cannot use the Board’s operating rules to make legal arguments.
The JCB also claimed that the rules give the chief counsel (Norton) the right to prepare a complaint if she receives tips that warrant an investigation.
As reported in July by The Philadelphia Inquirer, Norton could neither confirm nor deny whether there was a current investigation against Judge DiClaudio, nor whether a complaint was filed against him. Per Norton, investigatory findings are only made public if the board decides to bring formal charges. At the time of the July publication, van der Veen did not return a request for comment by Law.com; however, he has previously touted Judge DiClaudio’s esteemed career, saying “lawyers appearing before him universally hold him in high regard as a fair and impartial Judge sitting in our Court of Common Pleas.”
Judge DiClaudio has denied the allegations against him, saying he “has not done anything wrong in Cheesesteak Gate or any other matter.”
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