2023 MSBA Professional Excellence Award
About
This award is presented to commend one or more attorneys who are actively involved in the legal profession and who combine excellence in professional service with outstanding service to and on behalf of the Minnesota State Bar, the legal profession, or the public. This award recognizes attorneys who strive to meet the many responsibilities of a lawyer, including efforts to improve the administration of justice and practice of law, efforts to promote access to justice, efforts to serve and govern the profession, and service of benefit to the community.
Most Recent Awards
Magistrate Jill Prohofsky
Magistrate Prohofsky is the Chief Child Support Magistrate with the Minnesota State Court Administrator’s Office, and previously was a Child Support Magistrate for 17 years in the 4th and 10th Judicial Districts. She is highly involved in the legal community, having served 17 years as a mock trial judge and served as a Minnesota Women Lawyers board member and President of the Minnesota State Bar Foundation.
Susan M. Holden
Susan Holden is a partner and shareholder at SiebenCarey, where she has spent her career representing clients in a variety of complex personal injury and wrongful death claims. Ms. Holden has received numerous awards recognizing her as one of the state’s premier trial attorneys and legal volunteers, and was appointed in 2008 by the Chief Justice to chair the Special Master Panel in the specially created compensation process for survivors of the I-35W bridge collapse.
Previous Recipients
2022 – Hon. Matthew J. Opat2021 – Landon Ascheman2020 – Jack Rice2019 – Mike Boulette – Chris Bowman – Jeanne Jansen 2018 – no award given2017 – John Dornik – Kenneth R. White – Susan K. Wiens2016 – Judge Cara Lee Neville2012 – Sue Dosal – Judge Roger Klaphake2011 – Brockton Hunter2010 – Minnesota lawyers who served with the 34th “Red Bull” Infantry Division of the Minnesota Army National Guard2009 – Special Compensation Process for Survivors of the 35W Bridge Collapse Pro Bono Attorneys and The Special Master Panel2008 – Chief Justice Russell A Anderson – Justice Sam Hanson2007 – Henry (Hank) Shea III2006 – Thomas Conlin – Judge Kenneth Jorgensen2005 – Charles E. Lundberg2004 – Neil W. Hamilton – Harry J. Haynsworth, IV2003 – Judge Diana Eagon2002 – Paul Marino2001 – Richard Pemberton2000 – Judge Edward Toussaint
1999 – Justice John Simonett1998 – no award given1997 – no award given1996 – Briggs and Morgan – Dorsey & Whitney – Faegre & Benson – Fredrickson & Byron – Gray Plant Mooty – Leonard Street and Deinard – Lindquist & Vennum – Oppenheimer Wolff & Donnelly – Popham Haik – Rider Bennet Egan & Arundel – Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi1995 – Susan Stevens Chambers1994 – Bruce Beneke1994 – Jeremy Lane1993 – R. Bertram Greener1992 – no award given1991 – William Wernz1991 – Tom L. Johnson1990 – no award given1989 – Philip K. Arzt1988 – Paul W. Onkka, Jr.1988 – William B. Danforth1987 – DePaul D. Willette1986 – no award given1985 – Justice Douglas K. Amdahl
