The CWBA’s 35th Annual Convention will be held June 8-10, 2012 at the Vail Marriott Mountain Resort & Spa.  

The CWBA is excited to host its 35th Annual Convention at the Vail Marriott Mountain Resort & Spa on June 8-10, 2012.  Don’t wait to plan your June Vail visit. June offers the potential of balmy weather, Vail summer season amenities, and freedom from end-of-school year schedules. All of this comes with the promise of fantastic CLEs, networking opportunities and social activities. The 2012 Convention will revolve around the theme "When Push Comes to Shove, Grace Under Pressure" and provide a unique opportunity to hear from and interact with colleagues and leaders from the bench and bar.  Plan to meet us Friday for a great NITA program, then the popular Lathrop Award Reception.  Hon. Janice Davidson and Lynn Feiger are this year's Lathrop Award recipients, join us to help honor these remarkable women.  You won't want to miss the Saturday Luncheon Keynote address, featuring members of the Colorado Supreme Court: Justice Nancy Rice, Justice Allison Eid, and Justice Monica Marquez.   Further details tba.

To plan your hotel accommodations, contact the Vail Marriott Mountain Resort & Spa at: 1(800)266-9432. We look forward to seeing you in June at the 2012 Convention!

Mary Lathrop Award

History of Mary Lathrop Award was born in 1865 to a Philadelphia Quaker family. At age 19, she became a reporter at a local newspaper where she pursued a distinguished career until ill health forced her to choose a new career at about age 30. She came to Colorado, decided to go into law, and graduated first in her class from the University of Denver School of Law. She passed the Colorado Bar in 1896 with a score that would stand as a record until 1941. She hung her shingle in Colorado in 1897, specializing in probate law. After being turned down twice because "women should not practice law," she was the first woman admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court in Colorado. Her "firsts" also include being the first woman to open a law office in Colorado, first woman to argue before the Colorado Supreme Court, first woman to be admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, and first woman to join the Colorado and Denver Bar Associations. She was also one of the first two women to join the American Bar Association. She helped re-draft probate statutes in Colorado and assisted in developing the Small Guardianship Law. Her most famous case was Clayton v. Hallett, which established the law of charitable bequests in Colorado. At the time of her death in 1951, she had received numerous awards. During her lifetime, she made anonymous donations to help students and she left the bulk of her estate to establish a student loan fund at Denver University.

The Colorado Women’s Bar Association, with the financial support of Rothgerber, Johnson & Lyons, first presented the Mary Lathrop Award in 1991, and has made an annual presentation every year since, in order to preserve and foster the memory of this woman who has left a legacy for us all. 

Mary Lathrop Award Recipients
1991 Elizabeth Adams Conour, Elizabeth L.Guyton Girch, Estelle Hadley, Helen T. Street
1992 Mary Brickner, Margaret B. Ellison, Brooke Wunnicke
1993 Jean Dubofsky, Marilyn Traub Meadoff, The Honorable Jacqueline St. Joan
1994 Natalie S. Ellwood
1995 Norma Comstock, Karen Steinhauser, The Honorable Zita L. Weinshienk
1996 Sheila Hyatt, Barbara Salomon, Mimi Wesson
1997 Cathlin Donnell, Mary Hoagland
1998 Susan Barnes, The Honorable Claudia Jordan
1999 Gale Norton, Gail Schoettler
2000 Christine Arguello, Dottie Wham
2001 The Honorable Rebecca Love Kourlis
2002 The Honorable Mary Mullarkey
2003 The Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Mary E. Ricketson
2004 Marla Williams
2005 The Honorable Nancy E. Rice
2006 Fay M. Matsukage
2007 Pamela Robillard Mackey
2008 Lynda A. McNeive
2009 Elizabeth A. Starrs
2010 Deborah R. Adams
2011 The Honorable Mary A. Celeste