Shepherd to receive Musmanno award

September 25, 2000

Carol Nelson Shepherd will receive the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association's highest honor, the Justice Michael A. Musmanno Award, during a presentation Oct. 19 at the new Ritz Carlton Hotel.

The Musmanno Award is given each year to an outstanding judge, lawyer or citizen who represents the spirit and ideals of the late Justice Michael Musmanno of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. A lawyers, speaker, statesman and legislator, Justice Musmanno never stood aside complacently when he believed that cruelty and injustice were being inflicted. In this spirit, Ms. Shepherd has been chosen to receive this year's award.

A founding partner of Feldman Shepherd Wohlgelernter & Tanner, Carol Nelson Shepherd has been a persuasive voice for victims' rights both in the courtroom and in the legislature. Specializing in medical negligence claims, she is recognized by her colleagues as a knowledgeable, well-prepared and smart advocate who pursues her client's cause with masterful lawyering.

A trailblazer for female attorneys, in 1987 Shepherd was elected the first woman president of the Philadelphia Trial lawyers Association, becoming the first female to attain the presidency of any local trial lawyers group in the nation. In 1997, she served as president of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association.

Active in the Philadelphia Bar Association, Shepherd is a former member of the board of governors and past chair of the state civil judicial procedures committee. She is presently CO-chair of the bar association's women in the profession committee and has been a member since the early 80s of many other bar committees.

She has held leadership positions with the American Bar Association, as vice-chair of its Law & Medicine Committee (1995-97); the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, as a member of its board of governors (1988-91) and as chair of the professional negligence section (1992-93); the Pennsylvania Bar Association, as a member of its house of delegates (1987-present) and chair of its civil litigation section (1995-96). She has chaired a disciplinary board hearing committee and is currently a member of the board of directors of the Women's law Project.

A graduate of Syracuse University College of Law, shepherd was honored most recently as the recipient of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association's Milton D. Rosenberg Award for service, and, in 1996, received the Pennsylvania Bar Association's civil litigation section special award.

Past recipients of the Justice Michael A. Musmanno Award include the Judge J. Sydney Hoffman; Judge I. Raymond Kremer; Elwood S. Levy; Judge William F. Cercone; James E. Beasley; Marvin Comisky; Judge Rolf Larsen; James F. Gerald Litvin; Ralph nader; Arthur G. Raynes; Judge Robert C. Juberlirer; Herbert F. Kolsby; Morris S. Dees; Donald E. Matusow; Congressman Richard A. Gephardt; Martin Greitzer; James R. Ronca; and Joan Claybrook.

All members of the bench and bar are invited to attend. For more information, contact the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association at 215-732-2256.