The 2025 New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law Awards on June 12 will honor individuals who uphold the profession’s highest ideals and who have accomplished significant career achievements.
Theodore H. Ritter, managing partner at The Ritter Law Office LLC, will receive the Daniel J. O’Hern Award. Former New Jersey Public Defender Joseph A. Krakora, now a faculty fellow at the Princeton School of Public Affairs and International Policy, will be recognized with the Charles J. Hollenbeck Award. The Lighthouse Award will be given posthumously to Van W. Lane, former Monmouth County deputy public defender.
Dozens of attorneys representing bar associations across the state will receive Professional Lawyer of the Year Awards, given to those who are respected by colleagues for their character, competence and exemplary professional behavior.
Visit njsba.com to register for the luncheon and view a full list of the award recipients.
Here are the top honorees:
O’Hern Award
The O’Hern Award is presented to an attorney who exhibits integrity, competence, high ethical standards, career achievement and service to the bar and community.
Ritter has developed a reputation as a South Jersey attorney of high moral and ethical standards since he founded a general practice law firm in Bridgeton nearly 50 years ago. He is highly active in the Cumberland County Bar Association and foundation, providing guidance on all aspects of law to peers and colleagues and serving as a mentor to newly admitted attorneys. He is one of the few attorneys certified as a trial attorney by both the National Board of Trial Advocacy and the state Supreme Court.
"In his legal work, Ritter is meticulous, dedicated, diligent and fair. He promotes the cause of civility and professionalism with his every interaction,” according to Cumberland County Bar Association President Yolanda Garcia Balicki. “He embodies the principles of professionalism, and all that the esteemed O’Hearn Award stands for.”
Hollenbeck Award
The Hollenbeck Award is presented to an attorney who is employed by a governmental agency or nonprofit organization that serves the needs of the legal community and has served with diligence, competence and dedication to the profession.
Krakora led the state Office of the Public Defender from 2011 to 2024, overseeing an agency of approximately 620 attorneys and 1,200 total employees. Under his leadership, the office built a reputation as one of the best public defender offices in the country. Krakora’s career as a public defender began in 1986 and spanned 34 years. He has been an effective advocate for change in the juvenile justice and county jail systems and the New Jersey Criminal Sentencing and Disposition Commission.
“Krakora continues, post-retirement, to teach and lead young scholars at Princeton’s School of Public and International Affairs, and created a student program on clemency petitions. We have not had a finer public defender,” Presiding Judge of the Appellate Division Jack M. Sabatino stated in his nomination letter for Krakora.
Lighthouse Award
The Lighthouse Award honors an attorney or judge whose professional community-based efforts serve as an inspiration to colleagues.
Van Lane, who died in September, served the community and criminal justice system with distinction as he rose through the ranks of the Monmouth County Public Defender’s Office in his 25 years of service. Colleagues remember him as a consummate professional whose pragmatic approach was instrumental in the office’s seamless transition through criminal justice reform.
“Van Lane’s physical loss is felt, but pales in comparison to the legacy left behind as a leader, advocate and unmatched contributor to the community and the Office of the Public Defender,” the office stated.