PrintRichard J. Phelan Public Service Award
The Richard J. Phelan Public Service Award honors attorneys who have dedicated a significant portion of their legal career to the public sector, achieved excellence in their work and demonstrated a firm commitment to increasing access to justice for all Chicagoans.
This award is presented by The Chicago Bar Foundation in honor of Richard J. Phelan, a leader who has masterfully blended public service into his legal career. Mr. Phelan, a past President of The Chicago Bar Association, is a retired partner at the law firm of Foley & Lardner and has represented clients in a trial practice that includes products liability, public law, intellectual property and reinsurance for over 40 years. Mr. Phelan previously served as president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, where he oversaw the largest unified court system in the country. From 1988 to 1989, he served as special outside counsel to the US House of Representatives Committee on Standards of Official Conduct in the matter of Speaker James C. Wright.
Established in 2004, this award allows the recipient to designate a special Chicago Bar Foundation grant to the legal aid or public interest law organization of his or her choice.
This award is presented by The Chicago Bar Foundation in honor of Richard J. Phelan, a leader who has masterfully blended public service into his legal career. Mr. Phelan, a past President of The Chicago Bar Association, is a retired partner at the law firm of Foley & Lardner and has represented clients in a trial practice that includes products liability, public law, intellectual property and reinsurance for over 40 years. Mr. Phelan previously served as president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, where he oversaw the largest unified court system in the country. From 1988 to 1989, he served as special outside counsel to the US House of Representatives Committee on Standards of Official Conduct in the matter of Speaker James C. Wright.
Established in 2004, this award allows the recipient to designate a special Chicago Bar Foundation grant to the legal aid or public interest law organization of his or her choice.
2007 Award Recipient
James L. Dunn, City of Chicago Department of Law
As an attorney for the City of Chicago’s Corporation Counsel since 1992, Jim Dunn has been an exemplary public servant. An accomplished trial attorney, Jim has always represented our City and the millions who call Chicago home with dedication and aplomb. In addition to being a top notch lawyer who has earned the deep respect of his colleagues for his integrity, legal skills and commitment to his work, Jim has distinguished himself in the community as well.
Since 1994, Jim has mentored hundreds of high school students through the Law Explorers Program sponsored by the CBA Young Lawyers Section, sharing his professional experiences and helping students from underprivileged communities in Chicago to explore careers in the legal profession. Jim helps organize career nights and seminars on law-related topics for high school students, giving them a practical perspective on the profession and their rights and responsibilities under the law. Each year in March, Jim leads a group of volunteer lawyers (many of whom he has personally recruited) who meet twice a week with a select group of students who have qualified for the Mock Trial Competition and prepare the students for the competition.
Having been involved with the Law Explorers Program for more than 12 years now, the impact of Jim’s work is apparent in the success of the hundreds of students he has mentored. Some of them have already gone on to be lawyers themselves, and many more plan to do so. As one of his colleagues and nominators remarked, Jim is always there for his students, his colleagues and his friends. His dedication to public service, to his students, and to his community is an inspiration to us all.