Hon. Robert N. Opel, II U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Wilkes-Barre Judge Opel received his Juris Doctor from Temple Law School and was admitted to the practice of law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1978. In his private practice, he concentrated on bankruptcy matters. Judge Opel served as a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Trustee in the Middle District of Pennsylvania from 1998 to 2006 and was also a certified Bankruptcy Mediator beginning in 1998. He Opel is a member and past Vice President of the Middle District Bankruptcy Bar Association, a member and past President of the Luzerne County Bar Association and a former member of the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees and the Pennsylvania Bar Association. Judge Opel was appointed as a third Judge in the Middle District of Pennsylvania in September 2006.