William R. Robie Leadership Award

This award will be sponsored annually by NFPA in honor of The Honorable William R. Robie and his dedication to the paralegal profession, the expansion of the delivery of legal services and equal access to justice for all Americans.

ELIGIBILITY:  Each member association of NFPA may sponsor a candidate for the award. The candidate need not be a member of the nominating NFPA association but must be a member of an NFPA Association. The nomination shall be on the official nomination form and shall be accompanied by a letter of recommendation by the nominating association president. The criteria shall be those qualities which set Judge Robie apart from the crowd:

1. Candidate must be a voting, student or affiliate member of an NFPA affiliated association. In no event may a candidate be a vendor, full-time paralegal educator, lawyer or "sustaining" association member.

2. Candidate must possess the qualities exhibited by Judge Robie:
   A.   Dedication to the paralegal profession;
   B.   Service to the legal community;
   C.   Leadership;
   D.   Participation in association work;
   E.   Demonstrate a positive attitude toward paralegal education either by service on an advisory board, as an instructor in a paralegal program, or as a speaker in a continuing education project; and
   F.   Have made a lasting legacy to the paralegal profession through some distinct contribution(s).

SELECTION:  The Board of Directors shall appoint, at its Spring Convention, three Advisory Council members (one of whom shall be selected by the President to serve as Chair) to serve on the Robie Committee. The Managing Director will receive and distribute to the committee all applications to the committee. The Chair shall set up a telephone conference call for winner selection. The Chair will notify the Managing Director of the person who is selected. Only the Managing Director will be notified, not other person. Only the Robie Committee will know who and how many individuals were nominated.

TIMING:  Nomination forms will be distributed to all associations in the November INSIDE NFPA and are to be submitted to headquarters with a postmark no later than March 1. The winner will be announced at NFPA Spring Convention. The Primary Representative of the winner's association may be notified by the Managing Director by April 1, so that the local association can, if possible, make arrangements for the attendance of the winner. If possible, the announcement will be a surprise. Should the primary representative be the recipient, the president may be notified instead. If the winner cannot attend in person, all attempts will be made to videotape the ceremony in advance with only the winner and the association primary having advance knowledge of the award. (The element of surprise is a tribute to Judge Robie as he was well known for his interest in surprising people with good news.)

RATIONALE:  Bill was a big supporter of patting people on the back. He would approve of a leadership award in his name honoring someone who had made a significant contribution to the paralegal field.

WILLIAM R. ROBIE
LEADERSHIP AWARD APPLICATION

Postmark no later than: March 1

1. Chronological listing (by year or years): Local association involvement, NFPA involvement, university/college degrees, professional activities, volunteerism, "other" (publications, church work, theater work, etc.)
2. Letter of recommendation (from nominating association president)
3. Clippings from newspaper, professional publications, etc.
4. Photograph of nominee (if possible)
   i.   Awards and honors
   ii.   Other "noteworthy" accomplishments
   iii.  Names/dates of teaching/advisory board or CLE speaker experience
   iv.   Lasting legacy to paralegal field description

* NOTE:   Your nomination cannot be considered without sufficient supporting data as listed above.

i.   NFPA members (voting or affiliate) may select a member of their association or a member from another NFPA association for the award. Nominee may not be a vendor, paralegal institution, or lawyer.

ii.  A candidate dossier should be prepared by the nominating association. The dossier should include:

Application Form and Supporting Materials

(a)   Chronological listing (by year or years): Local association involvement, NFPA involvement, university/college degrees, professional activities, volunteerism, "other" (publications, church work, theater work, etc.)

(b)  Letter of recommendation (from nominating association president)

(c)   Clippings from newspaper, professional publications, etc.

(d)   Photograph of nominee (if possible)

(e)   Awards and honors

(f)  Other "noteworthy" accomplishments

(g)   Names/dates of teaching/advisory board or CLE speaker experience

(h)  Lasting legacy to paralegal field description
iii.   Dossier is due March 1 (postmarked) to: Lu Hangley, P.O. Box 33108, KC, MO 64114

iv.  On March 2, Headquarters will forward copies of all dossiers to the Robie Committee for review. Each committee member will rank, in order of preference, their top three candidates. Headquarters will set up a committee conference call for mid-March (no later than March 20) to select the final winner. Headquarters will notify the Primary Representative of the nominating association, unless already known) to determine if the winner will be at Spring Convention. If the local association can bring the winner, the award will be given at Spring Convention. If winner cannot attend Spring Convention, arrangements will be made to videotape the presentation at a local association meeting prior to the NFPA Spring Convention.

The award shall be presented by any Robie Committee or Advisory Council member present. In the event none of the aforementioned are present, it shall be presented by the NFPA President.

v.   Winner will receive the award dossier and a plaque commemorating the award.