Two members of the law school board and a Drexel University trustee have received Lifetime Achievement Awards from The Legal Intelligencer for their leadership and service to the legal profession.
Board Chairman Thomas R. Kline, a founding partner of Kline & Specter, P.C. was recognized as “the archetype of the 21st century’s Philadelphia lawyer and one of the greatest figures in Pennsylvania’s storied legal history.” He was elected president of the Inner Circle of Advocates, an invitation-only group comprising America’s 100 finest plaintiffs’ trial attorneys. Kline’s career includes extraordinary verdicts in catastrophic injury cases, leadership in refining tort law and practice and achieving significant safety reforms in hospital policies, physician practice and in public accommodations. He served as a member of the Federal Judicial Selection Nominating Commission for 23 years; for 12 years, he served as chairman.
Judge Ida K. Chen of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Family Division is recognized for her dedication to equal access to justice practices, including her leadership in developing language access and interpreter programs for the First Judicial District. Chen served the Pennsylvania Interbranch Commission for Gender, Racial, and Ethnic Fairness, chairing the Interpreter Services Committee. She also chaired the Ethics Committee of the Philadelphia 21st Century Review Forum, which issued a report and recommendations regarding ethics rules and protocols for the city of Philadelphia. She was the founding chairwoman of the law school board.
Drexel University Trustee Robert J. Mongeluzzi is founder and shareholder of Saltz Mongeluzzi Barrett & Bendesky, P.C., a leading personal injury law firm. Mongeluzzi has obtained and secured a progression of record-setting verdicts and settlements for myriad men and women and their families who have been the victims of workplace accidents and catastrophic injuries. He has been widely recognized for his leadership and achievements, including his election as former president of the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association and to the American Association for Justice governing board.
The Legal Intelligencer is the nation’s oldest daily law journal and an authoritative source of information on Pennsylvania’s legal news.