Judge McCaffery’s service to his Country, Community and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania began long before his legal career.
Judge McCaffery is a proud military veteran. At the age of 18 he joined the United States Army where he served on active duty with the First Cavalry Division. He was one of a few select soldiers chosen from the military to attend the prestigious United States Military Academy at West Point Prep School. Judge McCaffery is currently the only military veteran serving on the Pennsylvania Appellate Courts. After receiving an honorable discharge from the Army, Judge McCaffery attended Temple University and Temple University Law School on a veteran’s scholarship.

Judge McCaffery’s work ethic and commitment to service have been evident in every aspect of his life.
In 1991, McCaffery became an Assistant District Attorney in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. He quickly distinguished himself as a top-flight prosecutor assigned to the major trials unit, prosecuting over fifty jury trials and a thousand bench trials. In 1997, McCaffery joined Jaffe, Friedman, Schuman, Nemeroff and Applebaum PC in Montgomery County and was named partner in 2000. McCaffery chaired the firm’s commercial litigation department and spent 16 years as a civil trial attorney.

In 2013 McCaffery was the top vote-getter in the election for Judge of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. Assigned to one of the busiest trial divisions in Pennsylvania, Judge McCaffery presided over one hundred jury trials and thousands of bench trials. In 2019 McCaffery again was the top vote-getter, this time in the statewide election for Judge of the Pennsylvania Superior Court. McCaffery is currently the supervising judge for wiretaps and was selected by the Supreme Court to serve on the Court of Judicial Discipline.

Judge McCaffery’s work ethic and commitment to service were instilled in him by his parents.
Dan is the youngest of seven children born to Irish Catholic immigrants who fled violence in Ireland and came to the United States to build a better life for their family. Born and raised in Northeast Philadelphia, Judge McCaffery’s father Seamus was a union organizer and printer, and his mother Margaret was a custodial worker for the School District of Philadelphia.

In addition to his service in the courtroom and in the U.S. Armed Forces, Judge McCaffery has been an active member of the Democratic Party, standing up for the values we all share.
Prior to taking the bench in 2013, Dan spent decades volunteering for the Democratic Party. Dan served as a Democratic State Committee member, and as a member of the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee, where he also used his experience and expertise as an attorney to serve as legal counsel to the committee. Over the years Dan has worked on at least 50 campaigns at every level. Whether its managing campaigns, fundraising, or knocking doors for our candidates, Dan has stepped up to serve.

Judge McCaffery resides in Philadelphia. He is the father of two talented and successful daughters, Madison & Mairead, and the proud grandfather of his 2 grandsons, Stephen & Jack Daniel Jenkins.