D.C. Bar Announces 2025 Award Winners
April 08, 2025
The D.C. Bar has selected the winners of its 2025 Annual Awards honoring individuals and organizations whose outstanding work and exceptional projects benefited Bar membership, enriched the legal community, and expanded access to justice. The following awardees made important contributions to the advancement of the legal profession and provided critical assistance to the District’s most vulnerable populations.
Frederick B. Abramson Award
(Tie) Virtual D.C. Courts Interactive Website and MyDCLawyer
As the legal profession continues to embrace emerging technology, the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center collaborated with the D.C. Courts to launch an interactive website providing a 360-degree immersive tour of the court campus.
“A virtual resource is useful for litigants, practitioners, and members of the public to navigate the court,” said Kelli Neptune, executive director of the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center. “This tool bridges the [information gap], making the courthouse user-friendly and accessible to everyone.”
In 2024, after more than half a century, the D.C. Bar reimagined its lawyer referral service using artificial intelligence technology. Leveraging the latest advancements in AI and large language models, MyDCLawyer seamlessly matches lawyers with individuals looking for specific expertise to handle their legal issues. Potential clients provide details about their legal matter in their own words, and the AI engine analyzes attorneys’ profiles in its registry to generate relevant referrals. The process eliminates the delays and inefficiencies associated with manual referral systems. As of February 2025, MyDCLawyer had more than 700 attorneys in its registry. The launch of MyDCLawyer was led by D.C. Bar CEO Robert Spagnoletti, General Counsel Erum Mirza, and Chief Information Officer Caterina Luppi.
“We are the first bar in the country that has a lawyer referral serviced powered by artificial intelligence,” said D.C. Bar President Shaun M. Synder. “That’s a remarkable vehicle for helping the public reach our members, and for our members to reach the public.”
Community of the Year Award
Early Career Lawyers Community (ECLC)
The ECLC serves as a resource for new lawyers learning the ropes of the profession and connecting with peers. It offers educational programming, volunteer projects, and networking opportunities, including a happy hour with other young professional groups and group training with a career coach at a social club. The ECLC also hosts a listserv where new lawyers can ask questions and seek advice from other Bar members. Established in June 2024, the ECLC has nearly 800 members.
Voluntary Bar Association of the Year Award
Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers Association (MWELA)
Comprising more than 350 attorneys practicing in the employment law sector, MWELA is the local chapter of the National Employment Lawyers Association, a national organization of more than 3,000 lawyers dedicated to the advancement of employee rights.
MWELA supports the orderly and fair development of the law to the benefit of employees. In keeping with its mission, it hosts educational programs, discussions, and networking events for its members in cooperation with other voluntary bar associations. MWELA also regularly files amicus briefs on issues of importance in area courts, conducts moot court sessions for its members, and shares information of value to members, enabling them to keep abreast of pertinent developments in the law. Its annual daylong conference is devoted to the latest issues in employment law practice.
MWELA’s advocacy supported passage of the Fairness in Human Rights Administration Amendments Act in December 2024. The legislation extended the statute of limitations for violations of the D.C. Human Rights Act from one year to two years, eliminated an archaic rule that prohibited complainants from going to court after an administrative finding, expanded the definition of sexual harassment, and delivered equitable remedies to government employees, including awards for emotional distress and attorney’s fees.
Laura N. Rinaldi Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year
Paul Cornoni, Regan Zambri Long PLLC
A trial lawyer with Regan Zambri Long PLLC, Paul Cornoni dedicated 125 hours of pro bono service in 2024. Over the past decade, he has regularly staffed the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center’s Advice & Referral Clinic. Last year, he volunteered with the clinic on a monthly basis, providing 70 hours of free legal service.
Cornoni also serves as pro bono legal counsel in connection with the D.C. Court of Appeals’ mediation program, devoting approximately 40 hours of free legal service in 2024, including representation of four individuals before the court. In addition, Cornoni has been a regular volunteer for eight years with the Children’s Law Center, contributing nearly 40 hours in 2024. His pro bono representation involved a wide range of matters, including housing complaints, civil rights violations, public benefits assistance, domestic violence, and other related matters.
Cornoni has a special connection to Laura Rinaldi, a former D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center and Children’s Law Center attorney who died in 2013. He and his legal team represented Rinaldi’s estate in connection with the accident that caused her death.
Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year
Sidley Austin LLP
In 2024 Sidley Austin’s Washington, D.C., office of 303 lawyers and other fee earners contributed 42,560 hours of pro bono work, with 258 attorneys participating. Partners contributed 4,165 hours. In total, the firm’s D.C. office dedicated 7.9 percent of its billable hours to pro bono service in 2024.
Since its founding in 1866, Sidley Austin has demonstrated a commitment to pro bono service not just in the United States, but also in other counties such as Colombia and Madagascar. Sidley Austin’s array of pro bono programs includes the Capital Litigation Project, Constitutional Rights and Civil Liberties Project, Political Asylum and Immigration Rights’ Pro Bono Project, Pro Bono Project for the Arts, Trade for Development Initiative, Veterans Advocacy Project, and Emerging Enterprises Pro Bono Program.
Numerous organizations have lauded Sidley Austin’s generosity, including the Children’s Law Center, Kids in Need of Defense, Legal Aid DC, the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights, the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, and the Latino Economic Development Center.
All award winners will be honored at the D.C. Bar’s Celebration of Leadership on June 26 at the Westin DC Downtown. The Bar will also present its 2025 William J. Brennan Jr. Award to Nkechi Taifa, founder, principal, and CEO of the Taifa Group, and its Beatrice Rosenberg Award for Excellence in Government Service to Janice L. Hoffman, former associate general counsel at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
