INEWARK — October 28, 2020) Michael R. Griffinger, a Director in the Commercial & Criminal Litigation Department at Gibbons P.C., has been honored with a Lifetime Pro Bono Achievement Award from the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) Pro Bono Committee. Honorees, including Mr. Griffinger, were celebrated during a virtual ceremony on October 27.
Mr. Griffinger was selected for this award on the basis of his expansive 55-year charitable and civic commitments. As a result of the Newark riots in the late 1960s, he began his decades-long work for several legal services organizations, starting with Essex-Newark Legal Services, where he served as Chairman of the Board. He later helped to found three programs with similar objectives – equal access to strong legal representation and fair treatment within the justice system, regardless of position or income: Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ), the Legal Services Foundation, and the John J. Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest & Constitutional Law. Mr. Griffinger has served on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center since 1995, and he founded the Fresh Air Fund Games.
“Since the beginning of his career, Mike has set the standard for community outreach and pro bono service, a value Gibbons has embraced wholeheartedly,” said Patrick C. Dunican Jr., the firm’s Chairman and Managing Director. “He has made an indelible impact, both at the firm and on the legal community at large, and we wholeheartedly congratulate him on this well-deserved honor.”
Mr. Griffinger has contributed to the health and growth of the New Jersey business community as an active business and commercial litigator for over 50 years, representing major United States and foreign corporations across numerous industries, including railroad, automobile, food, telecommunications, and several others that are particularly important to the state’s economy, such as manufacturing, finance, and pharmaceuticals. Among his many accomplishments, he was part of the committee that successfully created a special Business Track within the New Jersey court system to handle complex commercial disputes and build a body of written opinions that could serve to guide the business community in its commercial practices. He also litigated precedent-setting cases that led to the establishment or clarification of important commercial rules, such as the Business Judgment Rule.
Various organizations have recognized Mr. Griffinger for his professional and volunteer efforts, including NJBIZ (2017 Icon Award); New Jersey Law Journal (2016 Lifetime Achievement Award); Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (Champion of Change); New Jersey State Bar Foundation (Medal of Honor Award); Trial Attorneys of New Jersey (Trial Bar Award); and the Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey (William J. Brennan, Jr. Award). He has been listed as one of the leading “Bet-the-Company” and business litigators in the state in such publications as Best Lawyers, New Jersey Super Lawyers, and Chambers USA Guide to America’s Leading Lawyers for Business.
About Gibbons P.C.
With 200 attorneys, Gibbons is a leading law firm in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington, DC, and Florida, ranked among the nation’s top 200 by The American Lawyer. Gibbons has been recognized nationally for its work – for example, as one of only 20 law firms on the National Law Journal’s inaugural “Midsize Hot List” – as well as regionally. The New Jersey Law Journal has awarded Gibbons a “Litigation Practice of the Year” designation four times in recent years, in the class actions, products liability, and commercial litigation categories and with the overall “General Litigation Practice of the Year” honor. Law360 has highlighted the firm’s multidisciplinary litigation strength, and its contributions to several high-profile corporate and real estate transactions in the public and private sectors, in its “Regional Powerhouse” series. For the past three years, Gibbons was selected one of the top three law firms and lobbying firms in New Jersey in the NJBIZ Reader Ranking Awards. The firm has been certified as a great workplace by the independent analysts at the Great Place to Work® organization. For more information about Gibbons, visit gibbonslaw.com.
SOURCE ARTICLE: https://www.insidernj.com/press-release/new-jersey-state-bar-association-honors-gibbons-director-michael-griffinger-lifetime-pro-bono-achievement-award/