About 170 people attended the Federal Court Bar Association’s 21st annual dinner, held at the Landing Hotel at Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, on December 5, 2024. The number of attendees either set or tied the FCBA record.
Attendees heard remarks from Chief United States District Judge Brenda K. Sannes and FCBA President Eric Nordby.
Career Law Clerk Deborah Moore (third from left) received the Lawrence K. Baerman Award, presented by FCBA co-founder Doreen Simmons (second from left) and FCBA Secretary Michael Langan (right). Photo credit: Tracy Kaback Photography
Chief Judge Sannes announced the recipient of the Hon. George H. Lowe Award, given to an attorney who demonstrates excellence and commitment in taking on pro bono civil litigation assignments from the Court. This year’s awardee was Michael J. Sciotti, a Barclay Damon partner, based in Syracuse, who each year teaches an invaluable CLE on litigating civil rights cases at both the Albany and Syracuse courthouses.
Past FCBA President Adam Katz and President-Elect Brian Butler presented the Judge Duane Award to John Powers, a Hancock Estabrook partner, based in Syracuse, in recognition of his zealous advocacy as a litigator and his public service to the Northern District of New York.
Michael Sciotti (center) received the Hon. George H. Lowe Award, named for Judge Lowe (left) and presented by Chief United States District Judge Brenda K. Sannes. Photo credit: Tracy Kaback Photography
Past FCBA President Doreen Simmons and Secretary Michael Langan presented the Lawrence K. Baerman Award to Deborah Moore, Career Law Clerk to Senior United States District Judge Frederick J. Scullin, Jr., for her contribution to the administration of justice in the Northern District over the course of her 33-year career.
Attendees also heard heartfelt tributes to and memories of United States District Judge Gary L. Sharpe, who passed away on February 12, 2024. Judge Scullin and United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino shared memories of their colleague, and two of Judge Sharpe’s law clerks – Benjamin Loefke and Cela Webster – recalled what it was like to work side by side with him in chambers.
The FCBA also paid tribute to Past President Jeffrey Hurd, who died suddenly on September 22, 2024, at the age of 57. Donald Boyajian announced a new award in his name, the Jeffrey E. Hurd Professionalism Award, to be awarded to an attorney who has made significant contributions to the legal profession through their commitment to professional excellence and ethical conduct.
John Powers (right) received the Judge Duane Award, presented by FCBA President-Elect Brian Butler (left) and FCBA Past President Adam Katz. Photo credit: Tracy Kaback Photography
The event also honored this year’s Scullin Scholars, scholarship awardees selected from the District’s three law schools: John Rockwell (Albany Law School), Ian Hayes (Cornell Law School), and Bess Murad (Syracuse University College of Law). Brandon Bryant, a U.S. Army combat veteran and Syracuse University College of Law student, received the Hon. Norman A. Mordue Law Scholarship.
The annual dinner was preceded by a CLE entitled “Courts in the Digital Age: Safeguarding a Human-Centered Justice System in the Face of Artificial Intelligence,” taught by Albany Law School Professor Antony Haynes, and then the FCBA’s annual meeting.
Special thanks to our sponsors – Porter Law Group, Barclay Damon LLP, Boies Schiller Flexner, Capezza Hill LLP, Coughlin & Gerhart LLP, Dreyer Boyajian, and Hinckley Allen.