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"In Memoriam"


 Legal Pioneer Jane Bolin Died Jan. 8th at the age of 98
 

Gone But Not Forgotten

A Reception and Tribute to our Legal Heroes sponsored by the Metropolitan Black Bar Association in conjunction with other Bar Associations and the Harlem Office of Attorney General Spitzer was held in September at the Harlem State Office Building to recognize Hon. Constance Baker Motley, the first African American woman appointed to the Federal Judiciary; Hon. Edward Dudley, Sr., the first African American Ambassador appointed by President Harry S. Truman; Hon. Bruce McMarion Wright, Supreme Court, New York County and Johnnie L. Cochran Jr.,

 


 
(l-r) Lawyers seated  Taa Grays, Director, National Bar Association, Region II; Ghenya B. Grant, President-Elect, Amistad Long Island/Suffolk County Black Bar; Bahaati Pitt, President, Black Bar Association of Bronx County; Nadine C. Johnson, President, Metropolitan Black Bar Association; Derek Sells, Managing Partner, The Cochran Firm.

(l-r) Standing Shamsey Oloko, former President, Nigerian Lawyers Association; James Williamson, Regional Director, National Association of Black Prosecutors; Edward Dudley, Jr., Esq.; Assemblyman Keith Wright; Jock Smith, keynote speaker and National Partner, The Cochran Firm; Guy Mitchell, Director, Harlem Office of the Attorney General; Hon. George Bundy Smith, Associate Justice, Court of Appeals and Lyndon D. Williams, President, Black Bar Association of Westchester County. (Bill Moore Photo)
 

 
Nadine C. Johnson, President of the Metropolitan Black Bar Association presented posthumous awards and a special award, accepted by Derek Sells, to Mrs. Dale Cochran.

In her comments on the passing of Hon. Constance Baker Motley, Nadine C. Johnson, President of the Metropolitan Black Bar Association, stated that “As we are saddened by her passing, we must celebrate the great life she lived in service to her community. Justice Motley was a monumental force in the cause of justice and was a leader of unparalleled firsts. The Nation and the World is a better place because of the lifechanging work that Justice Motley did. She left a great legacy and her example should set the tone for others in the legal profession to follow.”
 

 

Hon. Constance Baker Motley shown with NAACP LDF honcho Ted Shaw and Noted Attorney Jordan Vernon
at MBBA's 20th Anniversary Awards dinner that honored all three.
 


Since that time we have lost a number of other stellar professionals in the legal community:
 
  Hon. Howard E. Bell

Clyde Bailey, former President of the National Bar Association