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Standing Committee
Awards CommitteeEach year we recognize members for their achievements and contributions to this bar association, the legal profession, and the legal community.
★Nominations for the 2026 Merit Award recipients are now open — submit a nomination
How we work
Convenes in August, when nominations close
Open to
Past Presidents, longtime Queen's Bench members, and those familiar with the achievements of our membership
Contact
Our chargeFrom the bylaws
It shall be the duty of the Awards Committee to choose the recipients of the Queen's Bench Lifetime Achievement and Queen's Bench Merit Awards. The Committee is chaired by, and generally consists of, at least two Past Presidents. Bylaws, Article VI, Section D.2 · Restated 2024 — the bylaws name the Lifetime Achievement and Merit Awards; in practice three awards are given each year, the Service and Rookie Awards being the Merit Awards. In practiceThree awards, decided on the same calendar every year. Nominations come in to the committee over the summer. When they close, we convene in August to review every nomination and narrow the field to a final list of candidates or recommended recipients. We present that final list to the Board of Directors at the September Board meeting, and the Board votes to approve the presentation of the awards on behalf of the bar association. From there it goes to the President and First Vice President, who present the awards at the Gala. The bylaws put the selection in the hands of Past Presidents, which is deliberate: deciding who represents the best of Queen's Bench asks for people who have seen a lot of it. Not every award is given every year — when no nomination meets the standard, none is made. What we do
Signature programsThe Lifetime Achievement AwardBestowed upon a Queen's Bench member for her outstanding contributions and achievements over the course of a distinguished career in the law. The Service AwardRecognizes a member who provides outstanding service to the community and to our organization. The Rookie AwardAwarded to a new member who has demonstrated talent, leadership, and dedication to our bar association during her first year of membership. Past recipients
Lifetime Achievement
Hon. Charlene Padovani Kiesselbach
2025 recipient
Service Award
Hon. Dorothy Chou Proudfoot
2025 recipient
Rookie Award
Veena Bansal
2025 recipient
MBC Unity Award
Alexandra Sepolen
2025 honoree
Lifetime Achievement Award2025Hon. Charlene Padovani Kiesselbach
2024Hon. Mary Wiss
2023Not awarded
2022Hon. Charlotte Walter Woolard (Ret.)
2021Andrea Carlise
2020Not awarded
2019Hon. Angela Bradstreet
2018Hon. Barbara O'Hearn
2017Hon. Barbara O'Hearn
Service Award2025Hon. Dorothy Chou Proudfoot
2024Hana Hardy Gunther
2023Not awarded
2022Clarissa Kang
2021Elisha Jussen Cooke
2020Not awarded
2019Alice Anne Shaw
2018Cheryl Cotterill
2017Beverly Brand
Rookie Award2025Veena Bansal
2024Linda Anderson
2023Not awarded
2022Alexandra Sepolen
2021Catherine Reagan
2020Not awarded
2019Kaelyn Romey
2018Heather Fuchs
2017Kimiko Akiya
Recipients from 2017 forward. Earlier recipients are held by the History Committee — write to history@queensbench.org. Know someone who deserves one of these? Nominations are accepted over the summer and close when the committee convenes in August — and we would rather hear a name twice than not at all. Nominate a member — or yourself. Nominate a memberThe MBC Unity AwardThe Minority Bar Coalition's Unity Awards honor leaders from each of the Coalition's member organizations who are, in its words, Our cycle runs a step behind the Merit Awards: nominations are accepted by the DEIB Committee through August and September. In late September, the DEIB and Awards Committees hold a joint session to select the nominee, and — as with the Merit Awards — the selection is presented to the Board of Directors at the October Board meeting. The Board then votes to approve the presentation of the award to that member at the Unity Awards. The vote is then referred to the Second Vice President, who notifies the recipient. Queen's Bench has been putting a member forward since 2011. 2025Alexandra Sepolen
2024No nomination made
2023No nomination made
2022Andrea Carlise
2021Angel Lin Garrett
2020Sophia Maria Román
2019Hana Hardy
2018Nancy Newman
2017Hon. Barbara O'Hearn
2016Sharon Alkire
2015Clarissa Kang
2014No nomination made
2013No nomination made
2012No nomination made
2011Hon. Angela Bradstreet
Honorees are nominated by Queen's Bench and presented by the Minority Bar Coalition. The full roll of every member organization's honorees is on the Coalition's site. Who leads this committee
Maria SchoppCo-Chair
Past President, Queen's Bench
Pauline Farmer-KoppenolCo-Chair
Past President, Queen's Bench
Sara CraigCo-Chair
2026 President · Of Counsel, Peiffer Wolf Carr Kane Conway & Wise LLP
Reach the whole committee at awards@queensbench.org. It reaches the chairs and the Administrator, so nothing falls through when leadership rotates in January. Good to knowWho can serveThis committee is chaired by, and generally consists of, at least two Past Presidents. (Bylaws, Art. VI, §D.2.) If you have served as President of Queen's Bench and want a hand in this, write to us. How an award actually happensThe bylaws vest the choosing in this committee (Art. VI, §D.2), and the annual cycle runs like this: nominations come in over the summer; the committee convenes in August to review them and settle on the final candidates; the Board votes at the September meeting to approve the presentation of the awards on behalf of the bar association; and the President and First Vice President present them at the Gala. Members are welcome to put forward a name — their own included. Join this committeeThere's no application and no vetting. Tell us you're interested and we'll bring you in on the next round of work. Come to one meeting before you decide whether it's for you. Committee leadership, programs, and meeting schedules are current as of July 2026 and change from year to year. Corrections and updates: admin@queensbench.org. |