Our History

A History of The Thistle Law Firm and Our Founder, Daniel Thistle, Sr.

Daniel L. Thistle, Sr., 2005
Daniel L. Thistle, Sr., 2005

Daniel L. Thistle, Sr. founded The Thistle Law Firm in 1995. He was a former partner with Beasley, Casey, Colleran, Erbstein, Thistle & Kline Law Firm from 1970 through 1995 and also was on the Board of Directors for the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association and Mt. St. Joseph Academy. He was a graduate of Villanova University Law School.

The son of a lawyer, Dan Thistle grew up in South Philadelphia. He graduated from St. Joseph's Preparatory School, where he was a member of the crew team, and he earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Kansas in 1967.

Dan Thistle was known for having great sympathy for his clients and set an example of becoming involved with his cases. Several of the cases Mr. Thistle successfully litigated were profiled in The Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper. In 1982, he sued the Abington School District on behalf of a 16-year-old boy who lost the use of his arms and legs after a fall in the Abington High School gymnasium. In 1994, he represented the family of a man who died of AIDS after receiving contaminated blood during heart-bypass surgery at Graduate Hospital. In 1999, he represented a woman who acquired a serious lung disease after taking the diet pill Pondimin.

Dan Thistle was the first attorney to achieve a verdict in excess of $1 million in both Chester and Bucks Counties. Mr. Thistle has the distinction of achieving, what was at the time, the highest personal injury award in the history of Nevada.

Dan Thistle had been a lecturer in trial practice courses given by the Philadelphia Bar Association, Pittsburgh Bar Association and Harrisburg Bar Associations. In addition, he had lectured on behalf of the American Board of Trial Advocates in a program featuring “elite trial attorneys from across the country” and had served as a judge pro temp for the Court of Common Pleas for Philadelphia County.

Daniel Thistle, Sr. passed away after a battle with cancer in 2012. His 36-year career as a trial lawyer encompassed hundreds of major cases resulting in numerous multimillion dollar verdicts and settlements. He was recognized as a “Super Lawyer” by the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers Magazine, but more importantly, he was renowned for his compassion, his honesty and for his service to his clients.

Dan and his wife raised three children in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, where he coached youth soccer. Later, he attended his son's rowing events at St. Joseph's Preparatory School and at the University of Pennsylvania. His son Daniel Thistle is now following in his father’s footsteps alongside Tom Thistle, his partner in the Thistle Law Firm. They embrace Dan’s vision of giving their full attention to each individual case, and they uphold his legacy of integrity and client service as the firm’s priorities.