Portrait of Don Foster

Don P. Foster

Senior Counsel

Don Foster has been trying cases to verdict in federal and state courts throughout the country for over forty years.  His trial and alternative dispute resolution experience is varied and includes disputes involving, intellectual property, health care, franchising, corporate governance, law firm dissolutions, attorney relocation and fiduciary litigation in Pennsylvania's Orphans Courts.

Prior to joining Offit Kurman, Don was a partner in another prominent Philadelphia law firm. Prior to that he served as a law clerk to the Hon. James S. Bowman (dec'd), President Judge of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court, and as a consultant with the International Energy Agency in Paris.

Don is a member of the Board of Directors of Highmark, Inc., one of the larger Blue Cross/Blue Shield companies in the country, whose health plans provide health insurance coverage and related services to the citizens of Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Western New York He currently serves as Chairman of the Highmark’s Investment Committee after chairing the Audit Committee. He also serves on the Executive and Corporate Governance Committees. Prior to the formation of Highmark, he served on the Board of Pennsylvania Blue Shield.

During his career, Don has served in various leadership roles in and out of the legal profession.  He has chaired the Professional Responsibility and Federal Courts Committees of the Philadelphia Bar Association, serves as a Judge Pro Tempore in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, and completed a two-year term as a Delegate in the Pennsylvania Bar Association House of Delegates.

Don has also been voted a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer by a vote of his peers and in 2013 was recognized as a Top Lawyer in Health Care. For more than 40 years, Don has received Martindale Hubbel’s highest “AV” rating, and for the past 15 years has been a member of the American Bar Foundation Fellows, an honorary society of attorneys, judges, faculty and scholars whose careers have demonstrated dedication to the highest principles of the legal profession.

    Education

    • Dickinson College (J.D.)
    • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (B.A.)

    State Bar Admissions

    • Pennsylvania

    Court Admissions

    • United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
    • United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
    • United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
    • United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan

    Professional Affiliations

    • Pennsylvania Bar Association
    • Philadelphia Bar Association
    • Board of Directors of Highmark, Inc., Member
    • Investment Committee of Highmark, Inc., Chairman
    • Highmark, Inc., Executive and Corporate Governance Committees
    • Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Judge Pro Tempore
    • Pennsylvania Bar Association House of Delegates, Delegate

    Recognitions

    • Morehead-Cain Scholar
    • Dana Fellow
    • National Winner, The Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Environmental Law Essay Contest
    • American Bar Foundation Fellow
    • Pennsylvania Super Lawyer
    • Top Lawyer in Health Care, 2013
    • Martindale Hubbel’s highest “AV” rating

Firm Highlights

  • Podcasts
    Artful Donations: Exploring Museum Exchange
    In this episode of The Legal Canvas, host Caryn Keppler welcomes Robert Wainstein and Michael Darling, co-founders of Museum Exchange, the first digital platform dedicated to facilitating art donations to museums and nonprofit institutions across North America. Together, they explore how technology is transforming the way collectors, artists, estates, and cultural organizations connect through charitable giving. Robert and Michael explain the inspiration behind Museum Exchange, the challenges they set out to solve, and how the platform has grown into a network of more than 400 museums. They walk listeners through the donation process—from evaluating artwork and matching donors with institutions to handling logistics, documentation, and tax considerations. Along the way, they discuss the realities of museum collecting, why many donations are declined, and how thoughtful placements can help preserve artists' legacies while expanding access to important works of art. The conversation also explores Museum Exchange's work with living artists, artist estates, hospitals, universities, and smaller regional museums, as well as the launch of the Charis Foundation for the Arts, a nonprofit designed to steward significant collections before placing them with institutions that can best benefit from them. Robert and Michael conclude by sharing their vision for the future of charitable art transactions and how Museum Exchange is helping reshape philanthropy in the arts for generations to come.