Sydney Rochelle Harville

How Sydney Helps Clients

Sydney is a complex commercial litigator with a specialized concentration in antitrust, securities and energy matters.  She assists clients at all stages of litigation in state and federal trial and appellate courts, and in domestic and international arbitration.  Most recently, Sydney served as a law clerk for the Honorable Christy Criswell Wiegand of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.  Sydney has experience asserting and defending a variety of claims, including unfair competition, restrictive covenant, misappropriation of trade secrets and confidential information, bankruptcy and foreclosure proceedings, mechanics’ liens, successor liability, gaming, professional negligence claims and class actions.    

Sydney was selected as a Pittsburgh Business Times' 30 Under 30 awardee and Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Pathfinder in 2020.  She has been included in the National Black Lawyers' Top 40 under 40 in Pennsylvania from 2020 - 2023.

Sydney was a member of Buchanan’s 2014 Summer Associate Program. Prior to joining Buchanan, she was an intern at PPG Industries and a certified legal intern at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law’s Securities Arbitration Clinic, where she contributed to an amicus brief to the Supreme Court of the United States. She received a Frédéric Eisemann Award Team Orals Honorable Mention in the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot and the Excellence in Arbitration Advocacy Award in the St. John’s Securities Dispute Resolution Triathlon.

What Clients Can Expect

Sydney is a creative and solution-orientated partner who views her clients’ problems as her own.  She combines her federal clerkship insights, with her diverse experience, to anticipate legal and business problems before they arise and to offer practical resolutions once they do.

Proof Points

• Obtained emergency permanent injunction for oil and gas company in property dispute.
• Obtained dismissal for lack of jurisdiction in ICC arbitration for healthcare company in breach of fiduciary duty and fraud case.
• Obtained summary judgment for energy utility company in negligence suit which was affirmed at the appellate level.
• Obtained dismissal for healthcare company in successor liability suit.
• Served as lead associate in Robinson-Patman Act case seeking damages for price discrimination against a competitor.