Prol becomes president, Hille president-elect, Winder immediate past president
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 20, 2016
Contact: Kate Coscarelli [email protected] or 862-250-0571
ATLANTIC CITY: Thomas H. Prol last night became president of the New Jersey State Bar Association, the state’s largest organization of lawyers, judges and legal professionals.
Prol said he was humbled and honored to serve as the 118th president of the association. The 47-year-old Franklin Borough resident is a partner with the Sparta law firm Laddey, Clark & Ryan where he practices environmental and municipal law. He is the first openly gay president of the association.
Prol was sworn in at an installation held at the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City. New Jersey Chief Justice Stuart Rabner administered the oath of office for the one-year term.
Prol has set his sights on pursuing the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and continuing to be a voice promoting the importance of a fair and impartial judicial branch.
“We’re all on this quest to make the world a better place, and the New Jersey State Bar Association is an important vehicle and catalyst for change.”
“I want to be an advocate for our members and their interests. I look forward to standing up and speaking out on the matters that affect attorneys, their practices and their clients. I am going to embrace that role and our members – and all attorneys – can be guaranteed that they’re going to have someone out there advocating for them as strongly as possible,” he added.
In addition to Prol’s installation, the other members of the executive committee moved up the succession ladder.
• Robert B. Hille became president-elect. He is a partner at McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter in Morristown.
• John E. Keefe Jr., a civil trial lawyer from Red Bank, became first vice president.
• Evelyn Padin became second vice president. She is a Jersey City solo practitioner.
• Kimberly A. Yonta became treasurer. She is a criminal defense attorney from Middlesex County.
• Domenick Carmagnola, a labor and employment attorney with offices in Morristown, became secretary.
Miles S. Winder III began a one-year term as immediate past president of the association.
During his tenure as president, Winder worked on expanding the association’s efforts to make the profession more diverse and inclusive, furthering its efforts to increase opportunities for the state’s unemployed and underemployed lawyers, studying the future of the profession, and continuing to be a voice promoting the importance of a fair and impartial judicial branch.
“It has been a wonderful year. We confronted many challenges head-on and I am confident that this organization is better, stronger, more open, and more diverse and inclusive. And we have remained true to our core mission and advanced significant issues, such as standing up for the critical importance of judicial independence,” said Winder. “It’s always been important to me that I give back or pay forward the wonderful things that have been given to me as a result of my being able to practice law.”