Laurie R. Mansell, RP
President
president@paralegals.org
VERMONT PARALEGAL NAMED FOR 2002 ROBIE HONOR
Sally Andress, RP, was announced as winner of the 2002 William R. Robie Leadership Award at the spring convention of the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) held in Indianapolis, Indiana, in May. Andress is the office manager of Barr, Sternberg, Moss, Lawrence, Silver & Saltonstall, PC, in Bennington, Vermont, and owner of Paralegal Outsourcing in Shaftsbury, Vermont. She is a certified small claims mediator for Bennington County and, as the immediate past president of NFPA, was the advisor to the 2001-2002 NFPA board of directors.
NFPA established the award in 1993 to honor the memory of the late Chief Immigration Judge William R. Robie and his commitment to delivering legal services to those not positioned in society to obtain qualified help with their legal problems. The winner of the annual award must demonstrate commitment, leadership, and service to the paralegal profession of the quality that Judge Robie showed during his lifetime. The past winners of this lifetime achievement award are Laurie Roselle of New York (1993), Carolyn McKown, RP, of Delaware (1994), Jolene Miller of Kansas (1995), Merle Isgett, RP, of Florida (1996), Diane Soroko of Georgia (1997), Nancy Heller, RP, of Ohio (1998), Susan Daugherty, RP, of New Jersey (1999), Mary Thomas, RP, of Kansas (2000), and Betty Zimpfer, RP, of Ohio (2001).
Andress was nominated by the Rhode Island Paralegal Association. Letters in support of her nomination came from a variety of sources, indicating the range of Andress' contributions to the paralegal profession. A retired brigadier general noted how Andress initiated contact and cooperation between NFPA and LAMP, the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Legal Assistance for Military Personnel, bringing military paralegals into the NFPA fold. A videographer wrote of Andress' leadership in making NFPA's award-winning video, "Paralegals: Enhancing Practice, Professionalism, and Profitability," a 2002 road map to the utilization of paralegals. The current president of the Dallas Area Paralegal Association, which chose Andress as its 1996 Paralegal of the Year, noted Andress' leadership in two terms as president of the board of directors of the Legal Assistants Division of the State Bar of Texas and her pro bono award from the Dallas Bar Association.
Letters from individual paralegals who have worked with Andress and been mentored by her testify to her devotion to her chosen profession. Andress, who holds a bachelor of science degree in education from Ohio University, was a teacher before becoming a paralegal. She has worked tirelessly as a columnist for Legal Assistant Today, a panelist and presenter at a host of professional events, a member of advisory boards for paralegal studies programs, and as an articulate spokesperson for her profession. Her most recent office was president of NFPA, where she served two terms.
Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, NFPA is a non-profit professional organization representing more than 15,000 paralegals in the United States and Canada. NFPA is the national voice and the Standard for Excellence for the paralegal profession through its work on the issues of regulation, ethics, and education.
