The 2026 New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law Awards will take place June 11, honoring attorneys and legal professionals who exemplify the profession’s highest ideals through distinguished careers, service and leadership.
Jeffrey J. Greenbaum, chair of the Class Action Practice Group at Sills Cummis & Gross P.C., will receive the Daniel J. O’Hern Award. Joyce M. Maxberry Malliet, a longtime federal prosecutor and chief of the National Security Unit at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, will receive the Charles J. Hollenbeck Award. Nancy Eberhardt, executive director of Pro Bono Partnership, will be honored with the Lighthouse Award.
In addition, dozens of attorneys representing bar associations throughout the state will receive Professional Lawyer of the Year Awards, recognizing lawyers respected by their peers for their character, competence and exemplary professional conduct.
Visit njsba.com to register for the luncheon and view a full list of award recipients.
Jeffrey J. Greenbaum
Daniel J. O’Hern Award
The Daniel J. O’Hern Award recognizes an attorney who demonstrates integrity, competence, high ethical standards, career achievement, and service to the bar and community.
Greenbaum is a seasoned litigator and trial attorney with extensive experience in federal and state courts, focusing on complex business disputes and class action defense litigation. Over the course of his career, he has handled matters involving securities, RICO and consumer fraud claims, professional liability, antitrust, banking, chancery practice, contracts, trade secrets, real estate and unfair competition.
A former president of the Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey (AFBNJ), Greenbaum has long advocated for procedural reforms designed to strengthen the rule of law and improve the administration of justice.
“Greenbaum’s lifelong service to the legal profession reflects a sustained and exemplary commitment to the values embodied in the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law’s Principles of Professionalism,” AFBNJ President Rebekah Conroy stated. “He has consistently demonstrated integrity, civility and professional excellence through his leadership and service to the court and the bar.”
Joyce M. Maxberry Malliet
Charles J. Hollenbeck Award
The Charles J. Hollenbeck Award honors an attorney employed by a governmental agency or nonprofit organization who has served the legal community with diligence, competence and dedication.
Malliet has devoted more than two decades to public service through the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, where she currently serves as chief of the National Security Unit. In that role, she oversees matters involving terrorism-related investigations and prosecutions, threats to critical infrastructure, export-control violations, defense contractor fraud and other national security issues. She is the first woman to lead the unit.
In addition to her prosecutorial work, Malliet has been actively involved with the AFBNJ, serving as a trustee since 2019.
“Malliet treats all persons she encounters with the utmost respect and equality, whether it is the judge before whom she is appearing, her adversaries in the courtroom, the person who cleans the courthouse floors, a scholarship applicant, or a re-entry participant,” Conroy stated. “She embodies the principles of professionalism to which all should aspire.”
Nancy Eberhardt
Lighthouse Award
The Lighthouse Award recognizes an attorney or judge whose professional and community-based efforts inspire colleagues and advance the public good.
As executive director of Pro Bono Partnership, Eberhardt has spent more than two decades expanding access to free legal assistance for individuals in need and the nonprofit organizations that serve them. Her work has helped strengthen pro bono services across New Jersey and improve legal support for community-based organizations statewide.
Eberhardt also served on the NJSBA’s Pro Bono Task Force, which authored the influential 2012 Closing the Justice Gap Report, a study that led to meaningful improvements in pro bono practices throughout the state.
“Eberhardt has dedicated her professional life to serving the needs of the legal community and improving the quality of legal services throughout the state,” according to Cathy Keenan, executive director of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice. “She has worked tirelessly to expand pro bono access for individuals in need of free legal services, as well as for the many nonprofit organizations that support them.”