Jennifer Prioleau, Esq.
“Ensuring access to justice is not only a moral imperative but a non-negotiable societal concept that we must make a reality—and that means supporting organizations like VLJ either through donations of time or money.”
Not too many volunteers are “Have bar license, will travel,” but for VLJ’s May 2023 Volunteer of the Month, that’s the spirit of how she ensures access to justice, whether it’s from her home in New Jersey, corporate headquarters in Pennsylvania, or global headquarters in Germany. This month, VLJ honors Board Trustee and Secretary Jennifer Prioleau, Esq. as our Volunteer of the Month.
Jennifer serves on the executive leadership team of B. Braun Medical Inc. as Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer, Chief Compliance Officer & Corporate Secretary, where her primary responsibility is to lead all legal, compliance and governance functions. Prior to joining B. Braun Medical, Jennifer served as Associate General Counsel at HP for 12 years. Jennifer earned a bachelor of arts from Tufts University in International Relations & Russian and a Juris Doctor from Northwestern University School of Law.
Putting her degree in International Relations and Russian to good use prior to her law career, Jennifer spent four years as an international correspondent and producer for CNN and NBC News in Moscow. In sum, Jennifer is a C-suite executive with a successful career unleashing profitable growth by helping global businesses take smart risks, comply with the law, manage crises, avoid material losses, and protect their reputation. She is now trying to help the healthcare industry disrupt the status quo on improving health equity, especially for communities of colors and others facing gaps in healthcare access and quality health outcomes, which is a focus of VLJ’s efforts in providing holistic legal services.
Jennifer’s story with VLJ began in 2013 when she volunteered with VLJ’s Disaster Legal Response Program, and in 2014 she joined VLJ’s Board of Trustees. After several years of steady leadership and service, she was elected board secretary. While Jennifer is a strong business leader and consummate professional, her approach to the things she cares about—be they access to justice, technology, or ESG—is not stuffy or full of corporate jargon. Indeed, Jennifer is passionate and thoughtful (with a dose of “fun” added in for good measure) when it comes to professional pursuits, and she has used that approach to ensure VLJ is at the forefront of advances in the legal profession, accessible technology, and business best practices.
VLJ’s mission of ensuring access to justice for people experiencing poverty is both objective and subjective, meaning many things to many people. For Jennifer, ensuring access to justice is, “not only a moral imperative but a non-negotiable societal concept that we must make a reality—and that means supporting organizations like VLJ either through donations of time or money.”
A powerful way VLJ flips the script on volunteerism and pro bono is the way we partner with our volunteers, recognizing and celebrating their unique skillsets, strengths, and how they can piece together the justice puzzle. Jennifer’s years of service to VLJ mean we not only learn from the best, we have the best working alongside us, motivating us to challenge the status quo while zealously advocating for neighbors in need.
To Jennifer, our May 2023 Volunteer of the Month, we are especially grateful for your time, incredible talent, and most of all, you.
Connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn