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Topeka Bar Association Awards
The Topeka Bar Association recognizes outstanding service by members of the bench and bar each year through the following awards.
Click HERE for the 2026 Nominations Form.
Click HERE for the 2026 Liberty Bell Award Nomination Form.
Warren W. Shaw Distinguished Service Award
This award recognizes a lawyer or judge for exemplary service to the legal profession or the Topeka Bar Association.
It may be awarded to recognize an especially meritorious deed for service which significantly advances the
administration of justice, the goals of the legal profession or brings honor and recognition to the Topeka Bar
Association or may be awarded to recognize the continuous long-standing service of a recipient to the legal
profession or the Topeka Bar Association.
Warren W. Shaw Distinguished Service Award recipients include:
| 1995 Hon. E. Newton Vickers 1996 Retired Chief Justice David Prager 1997 Carl W. Quarnstrom 1998 Gerald L. Goodell 1999 Elwaine F. Pomeroy 2000 Judge Sam A. Crow 2001 Robert E. Tilton 2002 Wayne T. Stratton 2003 Thomas E Wright 2004 Edward L. Bailey 2005 Arthur Palmer 2006 Judge Terry L. Bullock 2007 Judge Richard Rogers 2008 Chief Justice Kay McFarland 2009 Donald Patterson |
2010 Eldon Sloan 2022 Arthur Glassman 2023 Hon. Nancy Parrish 2024 Terry E. Beck 2025 Hon. Evelyn Wilson |
Honorable E. Newton Vickers Professionalism Award
This award recognizes a member of the Topeka Bar Association who, by his or her conduct, honesty, integrity
and courtesy, best exemplify, represent and encourage other lawyers to follow the highest standards of the legal
profession, including those contained in the Topeka Bar Association Creed of Professional Courtesy.
Honorable E. Newton Vickers Professionalism Award Recipients include:
|
2000 Stephen W. Cavanaugh 2011 Judy Olander 2012 Tom Lemon |
2013 Natalie Haag 2022 Danielle Hall 2023 Hon. Eric Rosen 2024 Hon. Rebecca Sanders 2025 Patrick Salsbury |
Outstanding Young Lawyer Award
This award recognizes the outstanding efforts of a Young Lawyer member of the Topeka Bar Association who has
rendered meritorious service to the legal profession, the community, or the Topeka Bar Association.
Outstanding Young Lawyer Award recipients include:
|
1995 Darin M. Conklin |
2010 Justin Ferrell 2022 Jake Holly 2023 Keegan McElroy 2024 Jackie Hanzok 2025 Kayla Clark |
Past President's Award
Each President of the Topeka Bar Association is recognized at the annual meeting of the TBA and awarded with
a plaque for their service on the TBA Board of Directors after they have finished their term as president.
Past Presidents include:
|
1905-06 R.B. Welch 1969-70 Mark L. Bennett, Sr. |
1970-71 Erle W. Francis 2021-22 Sarah Morse 2022-23 Greg Lee 2023-24 Jessica Domme 2024-25 John Paul Washburn |
Liberty Bell Award
The purpose of the Liberty Bell Award program is to recognize community service that has strengthened the
American system of freedom under the law. Any individual who has rendered outstanding service to his/her.
community may be considered eligible. While all fields of endeavor are intended for inclusion, the award's purpose.
is to accord public recognition to men and women, particularly non-lawyers, for outstanding service in one or more.
of these areas:
- Promoting a better understanding of our Constitution and the Bill of Rights;
- Encouraging greater respect for law and the courts;
- Stimulating a deeper sense of individual responsibility so that citizens recognize their duties as well as their rights;
- Contributing to the effective functioning of our institutions of governments; and
- Fostering a better understanding and appreciation of the rule of law.
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1994 Gerald R. Beavers, Topeka Police Chief 1995 The Brown Foundation1996 Kids Voting Kansas 1997 Dawna Edmonds, Seaman High School teacher for mock trials in the Advanced Placement Govt. class 1998 Ron Keefover 1999 Topeka Police Department Citizens Academy2000 William E. Richards, Sr. 2001 CASA of Shawnee County 2002 Judge G. Joseph Pierron 2003 Battered Women's Task Force 2004 Shawnee County Youth Court 2005 Washburn Law Clinic 2006 "We the People...The Citizen and the Constitution" a program of the Kansas State Dept. of Education 2007 Judge Patrick McAnany 2008 KBA Young Lawyers Section Mock Trial Competition 2009 Horizons Solutions for Change 2010 Don Troth - Court Administrator 2011 Elizabeth Ensley Shawnee County Election Commissioner 2012 Connie Sanchez and the YMCA Safe Visit Program 2013 Ronald Wurtz, Retired Federal Public Defender 2014 Judge G. Joseph Pierron 2015 Kansas' Informed Voter, Fair Judges' Project Committee - A Project of the National Association of Women Judges 2016 Patrick M. Salsbury 2017 City of Topeka Clean Slate Project - Hon. Jason E. Geier, Monique Glaude, Topeka Department of Neighborhood Relations, Cook & Associates and Charles Kitt with City of Topeka Prosecution Office 2018 Kansas CLE Commission 2019 Topeka Bar Association's Expungement Day Project Committee 2020 Shawnee County District Drug Court 2022 Topeka Center for Peace and Justice 2023 Joyce Grover, JD, former Executive Director for KCSDV 2024 Kathleen Marker, YWCA Northeast Kansas 2025 Fred Patton |