Mark S. Cappuccio

Biography

Mark S. Cappuccio is Chair of the firm's Tax Assessment Appeals practice group. He is an experienced civil trial attorney and has extensive background in the areas of commercial litigation, real estate, zoning, condemnation and tax assessment law. As a member of the Firm's Zoning and Land Use Group he represents individuals, businesses and municipalities in a variety of real estate matters including land use, zoning and condemnation cases. He has been appointed to serve as a mediator in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas tax assessment appeals program, a program established to reduce the court's backlog of tax assessment cases.

Mark has obtained zoning and land development approvals for numerous businesses and school districts. He represents clients in the condemnation of properties for the construction of various municipal projects. Likewise, he has represented individuals and businesses to defend condemnations by PennDOT, local municipalities and authorities. He co-authored the Cumulative Supplement to Snitzer on Pennsylvania Eminent Domain, the widely quoted treatise on Pennsylvania eminent domain law.

He has a wide breadth of industry knowledge in general commercial litigation matters and has extensive experience in litigating tax assessment appeal cases. He has litigated valuation cases for numerous commercial and industrial property owners, as well as taxing authorities, before boards and courts at the trial and appellate levels.

Mark currently serves as the solicitor to Lower Milford Township, the Lower Milford Township Planning Commission and Marlborough Township.

Representative matters include:

• Represented Lower Milford Township in successfully opposing a 628-acre quarry that was proposed to be located on prime agricultural farmland within the township.
• Successfully obtained $3 million in additional compensation on behalf of a real estate developer who had proposed to construct 276 homes on a property condemned by a Pennsylvania school district.
• In a notable valuation case, he obtained a $65 million assessment settlement on behalf of a Delaware County school district. The case was complicated, dealing with 12 separate, but contiguous, properties owned by a City Authority.
• Successfully represented a school district client in obtaining more than $7 million in additional tax revenue after the court found that the school district proved the assessed values of the office campus in question were substantially below that indicated under applicable law.
• Mark has successfully represented various commercial property owners in tax assessment appeals throughout Pennsylvania totaling values in excess of $600 million.

Memberships

Mark is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, the Montgomery Bar Association and the Institute for Professionals in Taxation.

Bar Admission

Mark is admitted to practice before the bar of Pennsylvania, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Education

Mark graduated from the University of Delaware where he received degrees in both Economics and English. He received his law degree from Capital University Law School. In law school, he was a member of the National Moot Court Team and the Capital University Law Review.

Honors and Awards

• Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America®, 2019 - present.
• 2013 President's Award, Montgomery Bar Association.
• Selected by peers for inclusion in Pennsylvania Super Lawyers magazine.

Clerkship Experience

Mark served as law clerk to the late President Judge Richard S. Lowe of the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas.

Volunteer and Community Work

Mark is an avid presence in the local and regional communities where he lives and works. Mark has been appointed to serve as a Mediator for the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas tax assessment appeals mediation program. The program was developed by the County to reduce the backlog of tax assessment cases. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Family Service Association of Bucks County. The mission of the organization is to strengthen individuals and families by offering housing and health programs to improve their lives.

Mark serves as a member of the Judiciary Committee of the Montgomery Bar Association. In this capacity, he is charged with interviewing and rating candidates for the position of judge on the Court of Common Pleas. He previously served in this capacity between 2013 and 2016.