Honored

Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young announced Danielle Banks received the Albert S. Dandridge III Diversity Award from the Philadelphia Bar Association's business law section.

The award publicly acknowledges, recognizes and honors an individual or entity that demonstrates a commitment and makes a contribution to diversity in the Philadelphia area and promotes full and equal participation and inclusion in the legal profession.

The award is accompanied by a donation made on the recipient's behalf to an entity that embodies the business law section's commitment to diversity and inclusion.

The award was named for Albert S. Dandridge III, a former business law section chair and 2013 vice chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association, who was a helped draft, adopt and implement the business law section's diversity plan.

Banks, a partner in Stradley Ronon's labor and employment group and a member of the diversity committee, devotes a much of her practice to defending businesses, universities and governmental entities against employment discrimination claims.

Among her activities in the community, Banks is a board member of the Philadelphia Diversity Law Group and served as co-president from 2010 to 2012.

She is also the former chair of the Justice Sonia Sotomayor diversity award committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association and immediate past chair of the firm's diversity committee.

She also received the Barristers' Association of Philadelphia J. Austin Norris Award, which celebrates attorneys who commit to advancing black professionals in the Philadelphia legal community.

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Pond Lehocky Giordano LLP managing partner Sam Pond is set to be recognized as an award recipient at the 2020 Peggy Browning Awards.

The award recognizes the commitment to the rights of workers and their families.

The awards reception is set to be held from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. March 4 at Penn's Landing Caterers.

Also being recognized are Philadelphia Council AFL- CIO president Patrick Eiding and arbitrator Ralph Colflesh.

The award is presented by the Peggy Browning Fund, a 501(c)(3) organization that educates the advocates for workplace justice through fellowships, workers' rights conferences, regional workshops, networking and other programs.

The fund was established in 1997 in memory of Margaret A. Browning, a labor attorney and the first union lawyer appointed a member of the National Labor Relations Board.

In 2019, the Peggy Browning Fund awarded 87 law students with 10-week summer fellowships working for unions, worker centers, nonprofit organizations and union-side law firms advocating for the rights of workers and their families. Of the graduated alumni, 68% are working in workers' rights labor law or public interest law.

Before becoming an attorney, Pond worked at several union jobs. He is also president of Union Services Access, a legal consulting services network for unions and their members.

Speakers

Pollock Begg family law attorney Heather Trostle Smith is slated to present "Drafting Marital Settlement Agreements," a Pennsylvania Bar Institute continuing legal education program.

Trostle Smith serves as a course planner and faculty member for the program recognized by the international Association for Continuing Legal Education.

The interactive course will look at issues surrounding the crafting of marital settlement agreements in small groups based on attorney experience level.

Trostle Smith is a partner with Pollock Begg, advocating for clients in all types of divorce, support and custody cases, including those with complex financial estates and high-net-worth individuals.

She presents programs for the Pennsylvania Bar Association family law section, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, National Business Institute and Allegheny County Bar Association.

"Drafting Marital Settlement Agreements" is set to run in Mechanicsburg on March 3 and in Pittsburgh on March 4.

The course provides six hours of CLE credit. To register, visit the PBI website.