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Mr. Dandridge is chair of the Firm’s Securities Practice Group and a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. He was the Firm’s first Chief Diversity Officer and served in that role for many years. His legal work is concentrated in municipal and corporate finance matters, and he regularly counsels major public companies, broker-dealers and investment advisors on their securities reporting and financing requirements. Mr. Dandridge has also lectured frequently on securities topics. Before joining Schnader, Mr. Dandridge served at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as associate director of small business and international corporate finance in the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance. In addition, he served as special counsel in the Division of Corporation Finance.

In 2015, Mr. Dandridge served as the 88th Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association.

Mr. Dandridge is a decorated Vietnam Combat Veteran with the U.S. Marine Corps and was awarded, among many honors, the Bronze Star with Combat “V” for Valor and the Purple Heart.

News & Publications

Community & Pro Bono

  • Chestnut Hill Academy, former member, Board of Governors
  • Women’s Way, former member, Board of Directors
  • The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, member of the Vestry and Treasurer
  • Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, Member of the Board of Trustees and Treasurer 

Education

  • University of Pennsylvania Law School, LL.M., 1979
  • Temple University Beasley School of Law, J.D., 1978
  • Temple University, B.A., magna cum laude, 1975

Bar Admissions

  • Pennsylvania, 1978

Court Admissions

  • Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1984
  • U.S. Supreme Court, 2013

Professional Affiliations

  • City of Philadelphia Board of Directors of City Trusts, member
  • Philadelphia Diversity Law Group, Inc., Secretary and Treasurer; member, Board of Directors
  • National Advisory Board to the National Symposium on Diversity in the Legal Profession, member
  • Jenkins Law Library, member, Board of Directors
  • Philadelphia Bar Association, former member, Board of Governors; former chair, Business Law Section; co-chair, 2008 Bench-Bar Conference Committee; Vice Chancellor, 2013; Chancellor-Elect, 2014; Chancellor, 2015 
  • American Bar Association, former member, House of Delegates
  • American Law Institute, member
  • Clergy Assurance Fund, member, Acting Committee
  • The Philadelphia Lawyer, member, Editorial Board
  • Community Legal Services, Inc., former member, Board of Directors
  • The Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, past chair of the Hearing Committee
  • Philadelphia Stock Exchange, former member, Board of Governors
  • Temple Law Alumni, former member, Board of Directors
  • Agent Orange Litigation Settlement, former member, Advisory Board
  • Boston University School of Law’s Morin Center for Banking and Financial Law Studies, former adjunct professor
  • NASDAQ OMX Futures Exchange, former member, Board of Governors 

Other Distinctions

  • Recipient of the Honorable William F. Hall Award, 2014
  • Awarded The Legal Intelligencer‘s Lifetime Achievement Award, 2013
  • Named as a Philadelphia Business Journal Minority Business Leader Award winner, 2013
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America for Corporate Law, 2007-2023 and Securities Regulation, 2019-2023
  • Selected by Best Lawyers as 2022 “Lawyer of the Year” in Philadelphia for Securities Regulation
  • Noted as a “Pennsylvania Super Lawyer” for Securities and Venture Finance Law, 2004-2007
  • Awarded the 2011 John Stephen Baerst Award for Excellence in Teaching by Boston University School of Law, where he was an adjunct professor of International Securities Transactions
  • Rated AV® Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell®
  • University of Pennsylvania Law School, Fellow, Center for the Study of Financial Institutions, 1979

Representative Matters

Recent Significant Experience

  • Served as counsel to the corporate trustee in connection with a $14 billion merger and subsequent sale of securities.
  • Served as counsel to a significant activist shareholder in obtaining a material stake in a major industrial company. 
  • Served as local counsel to Fortune 100 clothing manufacturer and distributor in connection with $250 million tender offer and $1.25 billion consent solicitation.
  • Served as counsel to special committee of independent directors in connection with a NASDAQ-quoted communications company affecting a “going private” transaction.
  • Served as counsel to a dissident group of shareholders that was successful in gaining control in a proxy contest at a major natural resources company. 
  • Advisor to Board of Directors of a multi-state retirement community owner and operator of their corporate governance responsibilities.

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