NEW BRUNSWICK – Diana C. Manning was sworn in as treasurer of the New Jersey State Bar Association at its Annual Meeting and Convention. She is on schedule to become President of the Association in 2028.
Manning was the first female firm managing principal of Bressler, Amery & Ross, P.C. and is currently a member of the firm’s five-person management committee. She leads the firm’s appellate, business and commercial litigation, legal ethics and compliance practice groups.
“It’s a privilege to be a member of the Executive Committee of the NJSBA, the state’s leading group for lawyers, judges, and legal professionals,” Manning said. “Serving as a voice for this vibrant population and furthering the interests of all legal professionals in New Jersey is an honor.”
For over 30 years, Manning has represented clients in complex commercial litigation matters at both the trial and appellate levels. She is certified by the state Supreme Court as a civil trial attorney and is an accomplished litigator who handles a broad range of matters. Manning is an experienced and skilled appellate practitioner, appearing before the state Supreme Court in six matters, including arguing four times, and appearing as amicus curiae in several matters. In addition to her litigation practice, she also provides attorneys and law firms of all sizes with professional liability and ethics and compliance advice.
Manning has been an active member of the NJSBA, including serving as the incoming chair of the Civil Trial Bar Section, past chair of both the NJSBA Judicial and Prosecutorial Appointments Committee and the Amicus Committee, and as a member of the Nominating Committee, Women in the Profession section, Putting Lawyers First Task Force, Malpractice Sub-Committee, and the Appellate Practice Committee. As a trustee of the New Jersey State Bar Foundation, Manning has been a member of the Project Development Committee, Nominating Committee, and Court Night Sub-Committee.
She is a member of the Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct and previously served on the District XA Ethics Committee for 10 years, having been appointed chair by the state Supreme Court from 2017 to 2019. Manning is the immediate past president of the New Jersey Women Lawyers Association and is also a past president of Trial Attorneys of New Jersey, the Morris County Bar Association and Morris County Bar Foundation.
To date, Manning’s distinguished career has brought her honors from many professional and legal industry organizations. She will receive the 2024 Distinguished Alumni Award from the Rutgers School of Law Newark Alumni Association in October 2024. She is the recipient of the Trial Attorneys of New Jersey Trial Bar Award and the Civil Practice Award from both the Essex County and the Morris County Bar Associations, and three-time recipient of the Professional Lawyer of the Year Award conferred by the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law. She is also a fellow of the American Bar Foundation.
Manning lectures and writes on topical issues, including ethics, business litigation and professional liability. She is the author of the New Jersey Chapter of The Law of Lawyer’s Liability: Fifty-State Survey of Legal Malpractice, ABA/First Chair Press, which provides an overview of the laws governing attorney malpractice in each state.
Manning graduated from Rutgers University School of Law and Rutgers College. She is married to a fellow New Jersey lawyer, Frank Viscomi, and they have two sons, Sam and Nick, and two wonderful daughters-in-law, Odette and Shefali.