NEW YORK STATE BAR ASSOCIATION HONORS JUDGE AND ATTORNEY WITH HOWARD A. LEVINE AWARD

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From left, Jacquelyn D. Greene, Howard A. Levine, Judge Edwina G. Richardson-Mendelson and Betsy R. Ruslander.

ALBANY, NY (05/08/2015)(readMedia)-- Judge Edwina G. Richardson-Mendelson and Jacquelyn D. Greene have been honored with the 2015 Howard A. Levine Award for Excellence in Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare, given by the New York State Bar Association's Committee on Children and the Law.

The awards, presented on May 7 at the State Bar Center in Albany, recognize the vital services of lawyers and non-lawyers who have done outstanding work to improve New York's child welfare and juvenile justice systems.

"These two amazing women have devoted themselves to our state's long-standing commitment to the legal representation of children," said Betsy R. Ruslander, chair of the Committee on Children and the Law. "Each of them inspires those around them to re-dedicate themselves each and every day to helping the children and families of New York."

Richardson-Mendelson is the administrative judge of the New York City Family Court, a position she has held since 2009. She was appointed to the Family Court bench in 2003 and appointed supervising judge of Queens County Family Court in 2008.

Greene is a senior project associate at the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice in Delmar (Albany County), where she oversees technical assistance supporting improvements for youth with behavioral health needs. An attorney, she was previously the executive director of the Governor's Commission on Youth, Public Safety and Justice.

The Howard A. Levine Award is named for retired Court of Appeals Judge Howard A. Levine (Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP), who was the first chair of the Special Committee on Juvenile Justice, now the Committee on Children and the Law. He is an advocate and leader in the effort to improve New York's child welfare and juvenile justice systems.

The 74,000-member New York State Bar Association is the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. It was founded in 1876.

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