Tara Schellhorn ’07
For Tara Schellhorn, a Career in Bankruptcy Law Opened the Door to Leadership at Every Level
Tara Schellhorn ’07 did not arrive at Widener Law Commonwealth with a carefully mapped-out legal career. She came looking for direction, stayed because people at the law school recognized her potential, and built a career that now stretches from high-stakes bankruptcy matters to international leadership and public service in her own community.
Today, Schellhorn is a principal at Porzio, Bromberg & Newman, where she focuses on bankruptcy, restructuring and insolvency matters. Her work places her at the center of financially distressed situations, helping businesses, lenders, fiduciaries, and other stakeholders navigate uncertainty with strategy and steady judgment. She also serves as global vice chair of the International Women’s Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation, or IWIRC, and will become its global chair next year.
But her path into the law began less with certainty than curiosity.
Originally from New Jersey, Schellhorn attended Gettysburg College, where she majored in English. During an internship in the public affairs department at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, she watched the company’s legal team handle litigation tied to the fen-phen diet drug cases and found herself drawn to that work.
“As an English major, I thought I was going to go into communications or public affairs,” she said. “But working with the legal department … sparked my interest in the law as a possible alternative.”
That interest led her to Widener Law Commonwealth, where a scholarship helped bring her to Harrisburg, even though she had expected to return to New Jersey.
Once there, she leaned into the experience without a fixed plan.
“I really didn’t know much about the legal profession at all,” she said. “I was just trying to figure it out.”
That openness became one of her greatest strengths. Schellhorn credits professors who took an interest in her and helped her recognize her abilities while she was still finding her footing.
She immersed herself in academics and leadership, serving on Law Review and later as editor-in-chief, while intentionally keeping her focus narrow.
“I was really conscious that I didn’t want to spread myself too thin,” she said. “So I put everything into studying and into Law Review.”
One of the biggest challenges, she said, was learning to move beyond memorization and understand how the law worked in practice. She remembers that disconnect clearly from her first civil procedure exam.
By the time she graduated, that had shifted.
“I think I left with a much better understanding of the law beyond the classroom,” she said.
Schellhorn credits several professors with shaping that growth, including the late Professor Juliet Moringiello, whose influence remained long after graduation. She also points to professors D. Benjamin Barros and Susan Chesler as generous mentors.
One comment from Barros stayed with her, even if she did not fully appreciate it at the time.
“He said something along the lines of, ‘you’re not going to be the kind of lawyer that’s chained to their desk all day,’” she said. “I kind of took offense to it … but what he was really telling me was there’s more to the practice of law than just getting the work done.”
That perspective would prove important as Schellhorn built a career defined not only by legal skill, but by leadership and service.
One pivotal decision came after her first year at Widener, when she considered transferring to return to New Jersey. Instead, she stayed.
“I decided to stay, and it’s very hard for me to imagine my life would be the same if I had left,” she said.
After graduating and passing the bar, Schellhorn clerked for a year in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey. She then joined Riker Danzig in September 2008, where she spent more than 17 years, rising from associate to equity partner and serving on the firm’s management committee. She joined Porzio as a principal this January.
Her practice remains one of the most rewarding parts of her career because of its variety and complexity. Bankruptcy law, she said, blends transactional and litigation work, often requiring lawyers to move between court, negotiations and deal-making while drawing on multiple areas of law.
“It’s very solution-oriented,” she said. “That’s what I like most, figuring out creative ways to make a bad situation better.”
Outside the office, Schellhorn has built a leadership profile that reflects that same practical approach. In addition to her work with IWIRC, she serves as vice chair of the Lawyers Advisory Committee for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey and will chair that body next year. She is also a trustee for the Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey and is an elected member of the town council in Chester Township.
That last role, she said, was not part of a long-term plan.
“I accidentally became an elected official,” she said, laughing.
Still, the experience has become one of the most meaningful parts of her life.
“I’ve gotten so much out of serving the community like that,” she said. “It was something I didn’t realize I was missing.”
Asked what she would tell her law student self, Schellhorn did not focus on grades or job titles. Instead, she emphasized perspective and reputation.
“Your reputation really does precede you. It is one of your greatest assets. It is up to you how you want to practice law and be perceived by others,” she said. “For me, being seen as honest, reliable, and a straight shooter, that’s what really matters.”
Interview conducted in Spring 2026.
