January 27, 2009

CORPORATE COUNSEL WOMEN OF COLOR FOUNDER LAURIE N. ROBINSON RECEIVES 2009 DIVERSITY TRAILBLAZER AWARD

Rising star to accept prestigious honor at the 6^th Annual Celebrating Diversity in the Bar reception

NEW YORK —The New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Minorities in the Profession presented its prestigious Diversity Trailblazer Award to Laurie N. Robinson of New York(CBS Broadcasting Inc.). Robinson is the founder and CEO of Corporate Counsel Women of Color, an organization for “in-house” women attorneys of color to promote their advancement in the legal profession and workplace.

The award, honoring individuals who demonstrate a strong commitment to helping enhance diversity in the legal profession, was presented yesterday at the Association’s 6^th Annual Celebrating Diversity in the Bar reception at the Marriott Marquis in New York. President Bernice K. Leber of New York (Arent Fox LLP) and Committee on Minorities in the Profession Chair Lillian M. Moy of Albany(Executive Director, Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York, Inc.) presented the award to Robinson.

“At a time when fewer minorities are entering the legal profession, I congratulate Laurie Robinson for providing female attorneys of color with the resources and mentoring to stay in the profession and make their mark. Her ingenuity and efforts have made a profound difference in the lives of thousands of women attorneys of color,” said Moy. “It is a privilege to honor Laurie for her outstanding contributions to the advancement of minorities in the legal profession.”

Since its inception in 2004, Corporate Counsel Women of Color has grown to 2,300 members worldwide representing companies listed in Fortune 1000 and Forbes 2000. Robinson is vice president and assistant general counsel in the labor and employment division at CBS Broadcasting Inc., representing more than 150 television and radio stations in labor, employment and immigration matters.

A graduate of North Carolina Central University and Indiana University School of Law – Bloomington , Robinson was chosen as one of the “10 Up-And-Coming African-American Lawyers to Watch” by Diversity & the Bar Magazine and as a “Power Broker” by Inside Counsel in its list of the most influential in-house counsel in North America . She is a past recipient of the New York City Bar’s Diversity Champion Award and was selected as one of “40 Under Forty” by the Network Journal – Black Professionals and Small Business Magazine.

The 76,000-member New York State Bar Association is the official statewide organization of lawyers in New Yorkand the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation.  Founded in 1876, State Bar programs and activities have continuously served the public and improved the justice system for more than 130 years.

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