October 29,
2008
STATE BAR MOURNS PASSING OF LORRAINEPOWER
THARP
Tharp, 60,
served as third female president of the Association; initiatives
included gender equity, diversity in the judiciary, civil legal services
funding and animal law
It is with great sadness and a
deep sense of loss that we mourn the passing of Lorraine Power Tharp,
the New York State Bar Association's 105th President and the third woman
to lead the State Bar.
Compassionate, warm, and
wise beyond her years, Tharp exemplified the best of the legal
profession and unfailing service to society. From working to increase diversity in the profession and in the
ranks of State Bar leadership, to fostering gender equity in the legal
field, from serving as a role model for the profession, to raising
awareness of the care and ethical treatment of animals that the
profession owed, she worked tirelessly to give a voice to those who did
not have one.
"Lorraine strongly believed that making a difference was not only her
calling, but the duty of every attorney. She once said that every single lawyer has the ability to help
someone and to solve somebody's problem. Lorraine's legacy is her resounding belief that every lawyer counts and
that every person counts, and she lived every day to pursue that higher
calling," said President Bernice K. Leber. "Her lasting contributions to
the practice of law include working to obtain an increase in the
assigned counsel fee rate, supporting adequate funding for civil legal
services and spearheading the creation of a cutting-edge sexual
harassment policy for law offices."
During her
presidential term from 2002-03, Tharp created the Task Force on
Increasing Diversity in the Judiciary, the Annual Meeting Presidential
Summit and the Special Committee on Animals and the
Law. Following the presidency, Tharp
co-chaired the Association's Committee on Diversity and Leadership
Development from 2005-2008. She also
served as Treasurer to the Board of Directors of The New York Bar
Foundation. She was a member of the American Bar Association, where she
served as a Delegate to the ABA House of Delegates. Tharp frequently
lectured and wrote on real estate practice
throughout New
York.
Tharp was elected to the
Association's Executive Committee as a Member-At-Large in 1994, serving
three terms before beginning a four-year term as the Association's
secretary. She chaired the Real Property Section from 1998-1999. Tharp
was also a member of the Committee on Women in the Law and chaired the
subcommittee that drafted the Association's report and model policy on
sexual harassment.
A native of Massena,
Tharp graduated from Smith
College
and earned her law degree
from Cornell
Law
School. She was the first woman lawyer at McNamee Lochner Titus &
Williams in 1978 and later became the first woman partner in
1981. She became a partner of Whiteman
Osterman & Hanna LLP, chairing the Commercial and Residential Real
Estate Practice Group. A 35-year
practicing lawyer, Tharp received the Albany Law School's prestigious
Kate Stoneman Award in 2003 and the New York County Lawyers'
Association's Outstanding Women of the Bar honor in
2004.
Tharp was an active member of
her community, devoting substantial time and energy to many charitable
organizations. She served as a commissioner of the New York State Racing
Commission and was the first woman to serve on the Commission. She
chaired the Saratoga Springs Planning Board and served on the board of
directors of many arts organizations, including the Saratoga Performing
Arts Center, Inc. She received the 1995 Leadership Saratoga
Distinguished Alumni Award, the 2002 Saratoga Soroptimist Club's Woman
of the Year Award and the 2003 Albany-Colonie Chamber of
Commerce’s Woman of Excellence in the Professions
Award.
The 74,000-member New York
State Bar Association is the largest voluntary state bar association in
the nation. Founded in 1876, the Association's programs and activities
have continuously served the public and improved the justice system for
more than 130 years.
Information on service
arrangements and an obituary can be found at: http://www.nysba.org/LorrainePowerTharp.
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