CONTACT: Teresa Weidemann-Smith
State Bar of Wisconsin
(800) 444-9404, ext. 6025
twsmith@wisbar.org
Attorneys Honored with Mentorship Awards
MADISON, April 25, 2005 – The
State Bar of Wisconsin will bestow Mentorship Awards to six Wisconsin
attorneys for their exemplary service to the legal profession. The
awards will be presented at the "Building for Success" seminar on May
4th during the State Bar's annual convention at the Wyndham Hotel in
Milwaukee. Award recipients will be recognized for their professionalism
and willingness to assist new lawyers and law students entering the
practice of law.
"These individuals are being honored as outstanding examples of
service and commitment to the State Bar," said Attorney Nathan Fishbach,
seminar program co-chair. "Not only have these individuals achieved
professional excellence, but they've taken time from their careers to
mentor and support young lawyers."
The Honorable Tom Barrett, Mayor of Milwaukee, will deliver the
luncheon address on the importance and value of law as a profession.
Those receiving Mentorship Awards include:
Attorney Michelle A. Behnke, a sole practitioner in
Madison, practices in the areas of business sale and acquisition,
commercial and residential real estate, and estate planning. As the
current President of the State Bar of Wisconsin and a 1988 graduate of
the University of Wisconsin Law School, she has a long history of
service with the State Bar including serving on the Board of Governors,
as treasurer and as Chair of the board. She has also served on the
Diversity Outreach Committee, the Rules and Bylaws Committee, and the
Executive and Finance Committees. She is a member of the American Bar
Association, the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Dane County Bar
Association, Wisconsin Association of African-American Lawyers and the
Legal Association of Women.
Attorney R. George Burnett, a past President of the
State Bar of Wisconsin, is a partner at the Liebmann, Conway, Olejniczak
& Jerry, S.C. law firm in Green Bay. He received his undergraduate
degree from Marquette University and his law degree from the University
of Wisconsin Law School. He served as a law clerk for the Hon.
Harlington Wood at the United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.
He is an elected fellow to the American College of Trial Lawyers and
American Board of Trial Advocates. He is past chair of the Litigation
Section and the immediate past president of the State Bar of
Wisconsin.
Attorney Richard L. Cates, a founding partner at the
Lawton & Cates S.C. law firm in Madison, received his undergraduate
degree from Dartmouth College and his law degree from the University of
Wisconsin Law School. He has taught hundreds of lawyers in his trail
advocacy courses over the years and has mentored numerous young
lawyers.
Attorney Gerald M. O'Brien of Stevens Point is past
President of the State Bar of Wisconsin. He graduated with honors from
the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1959. He is certified as a Civil
Trial Specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is the
recipient of numerous awards including the Charles Goldberg Award for
lifetime achievement in the legal profession. His practice is
concentrated in personal injury and business litigation, products
liability and labor and employment law.
Attorney Pamela Pepper, a solo criminal defense
practitioner in Milwaukee, has served as a federal prosecutor in
Milwaukee and Chicago. She clerked for Frank M. Johnson, Jr. on the
Eleventh Circuit. Licensed in Illinois and Wisconsin she practices in
federal district courts in Milwaukee, Madison and Chicago. She is
vice-president of the Milwaukee Bar Association, secretary of the State
Bar and treasurer for the Association for Women Lawyers. She sits on the
board of the Federal Defender and the Wisconsin State Public Defender
and is an adjunct professor at Marquette Law School.
The Honorable J. P. Stadtmueller of
Milwaukee currently serves as one of six Article III
United States District Judges in the Eastern District of Wisconsin
(comprised of 28 eastern Wisconsin counties). As a trial judge, his
caseload includes both civil and criminal cases. His editorial support
and a unanimous "Well Qualified" rating from the American Bar
Association resulted in his judicial nomination receiving immediate
consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate, where he
was confirmed the same day his nomination was reported out of the
Committee. He is active in the American Law Institute; Federal Judges
Association; Judicial Conference of the United States; Eastern District
of Wisconsin Bar Association, Seventh Circuit Bar Association; and state
Bar of Wisconsin with other young attorneys.
For additional information on the awards or to register for the
"Building for Success" seminar, visit www.wisbar.org/cle/seminars or call (800)
728-7788.
The State Bar of Wisconsin is the mandatory professional
association, created by the Wisconsin Supreme Court, for attorneys who
hold a Wisconsin law license. With more than 21,000 members, the State
Bar aids the courts in improving the administration of justice, provides
continuing legal education for its members to help them maintain their
expertise, and assists Wisconsin lawyers in carrying out community
service initiatives to educate the public about the legal system and the
value of lawyers.
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