On Oct. 14, HLS Professor Elizabeth Warren, an expert on consumer and bankruptcy law, received the 2009 Lelia J. Robinson Award from the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts. The Robinson Award, named after the first woman admitted to the Massachusetts bar, recognizes women who are engaged in groundbreaking work in the legal profession, and who have served as mentors and role models for other female attorneys.
Warren was recognized for her contributions to consumer and bankruptcy law, where she has become one of the leading voices in the nation’s response to the current financial crisis. She is currently the chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel charged with analyzing the success of the Troubled Asset Relief Program implemented last year to help prop up the U.S. economy. She is also a member of the FDIC’s Commission on Economic Inclusion. Past public service posts include a role as principal investigator on National Science Foundation studies, a stint as chief adviser to the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, and a seat on the Federal Judicial Education Committee of the Federal Judicial Center.
“Throughout her work, not only has she become a leader in a traditionally male-dominated area and mentored many other women, but she has also studied and published on the effect of commercial legal issues on women,” the Women’s Bar Association said of Warren. “Her scholarship and advocacy are powerful and hold a special place of prominence in the current economic climate.”
Professor Warren is the Leo Gottlieb Professor of Law at HLS, a position she has held since 1995. She joined HLS in 1992 as the Robert Braucher Visiting Professor of Law.