The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association will present the 2012 Freedom Award to Judge Paul P. Biebel Jr., honoring him for his outstanding career as a lawyer and judge.
The award will be presented at the annual Freedom Award and Distinguished Service Awards Luncheon at noon on Friday, May 4, 2012, at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel.
Alumni receiving the Distinguished Service Award (DSA) are Kevin M. Hull (JD ’00), principal at Hull Partners, Ltd.; Professor Barry Kozak (JD ’00, LLM ’00), director of Elder Law Studies at The John Marshall Law School; Ricardo Meza (JD ’89), executive inspector general for Agencies of the Illinois Governor; and Nicholas C. Zagotta (JD ’94), partner at Roberts McGivney Zagotta LLC.
“We are excited to share our special annual event with such a distinguished group of honorees,” said Hon. James Fitzgerald Smith (JD ’75), president of the alumni association. “It is a pleasure to know that we will be in the company of these outstanding alumni who have done wonderful things in the legal profession.”
Freedom Award winner Paul Biebel, a Chicago native, has been the presiding judge of the Criminal Division, Circuit Court of Cook County, since 2001. He oversees the operation of the George N. Leighton Criminal Court Building, the largest and busiest criminal courthouse in America.
Biebel has been on the bench since1996. He has also served at the Juvenile Court, Child Protection Division, and as a chancellor in the Chancery Division.
Throughout his career, Biebel has received numerous awards and honors, including the John Howard Association Award for the Development of Innovative Mental Health and Drug Courts, and the Outstanding Judicial Leadership Award from the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless for the creation of the WINGS project in the Circuit Court of Cook County.
Hull works with non-profit organizations, private companies, and units of government in legislative advocacy and advancement. He serves as chair of the advisory board for the John Marshall Veterans Legal Support Center & Clinic and is an adjunct professor teaching Legislative Drafting.
Kozak is director of Elder Law Studies and the associate director of the graduate Employee Benefits programs at The John Marshall Law School, where he teaches courses in elder law, employee benefits, income tax, compensation law, workplace privacy, and sexual orientation law. In addition to numerous academic articles, Kozak’s publications include a textbook and a BNA Tax Management portfolio on employee benefits issues, and he is the lead developer of CALI lessons on elder law issues.
Meza has served as executive inspector general for the Agencies of the Illinois Governor, an independent/non-partisan state agency, since 2010. He manages a staff of almost 70 and a budget of more than $7 million, investigating complaints involving fraud, waste, abuse, and misconduct at more than 40 state agencies, nine state universities, and 300 state boards and commissions. Previously, he was the Midwest Regional counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF).
Zagotta is a principal of Roberts McGivney Zagotta LLC, focusing on the representation of municipalities, construction firms, physical fitness centers, chemical, manufacturing and distribution companies, real estate developers, professional athletes, hospitals, individuals, religious orders, commodities firms, securities firms, individual traders, and a multitude of other varied business entities extensively in corporate matters. Prior to practicing law, Zagotta was the principal of Zagotta Grain, a Chicago Board of Trade clearing firm.