Goldberg Honored by National Association of Women Lawyers

July 23, 2008 (NEW YORK) – Columbia Law School Professor Suzanne B. Goldberg is the recipient of the National Association of Women Lawyers’ (NAWL) M. Ashley Dickerson award, bestowed annually in recognition of lawyers who promote diversity. Goldberg accepted the award on July 16 at NAWL’s Annual Awards Luncheon, held at the Waldorf=Astoria in New York City and attended by more than 1,000 guests.

“NAWL was delighted to present the M. Ashley Dickerson diversity award to Professor Suzanne Goldberg,” said Lisa Horowitz, NAWL president for 2008-09. “Her commitment, as both a scholar and activist, to women’s rights, gay and lesbian rights, and the rights of transgender individuals, both in the United States and abroad, has made her a true trailblazer.”

Goldberg, Clinical Professor of Law, directs Columbia Law School’s Sexuality and Gender Law Clinic. Under Goldberg’s guidance, students work on a range of projects, from constitutional litigation and legislative advocacy to educational outreach and immigration assistance. Through the broad scope of its work, clinic students have had the opportunity to serve both individual and organizational clients, and collectively have devoted over 8,000 hours to cases relating to sexuality and gender law. Last year, the clinic helped secure asylum for a gay man from Jamaica and a lesbian woman from Turkmenistan.

Goldberg was one of nine lawyers to accept awards at the NAWL luncheon and one of two to receive a Dickerson award. The other Dickerson recipient was Hon. Deborah A. Batts, U.S. District Judge in the Southern District of New York.

NAWL is the leading national voluntary organization devoted to the interests of women lawyers and women's rights. Founded more than 100 years ago, NAWL has members in all 50 states and engages in a variety of programs and activities to advance its mission. More information can be found at www.nawl.org.

Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, stands at the forefront of legal education and of the law in a global society. Columbia Law School joins traditional strengths in international and comparative law, constitutional law, administrative law, business law and human rights law with pioneering work in the areas of intellectual property, digital technology, sexuality and gender, and criminal law.