WALDEN - The law firm of Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP (J&G) is pleased to announce Michele L. Babcock, Managing Partner, was recognized with the ATHENA Award by the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce Foundation during the Foundation’s 15th Annual ATHENA Awards Ceremony held on December 2 at Christo’s in Poughkeepsie. The firm is so proud of Michele and all she has accomplished.
Michele joined the law firm of Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP in 2003 and became a partner in 2011. She has served as the Managing Partner since 2015. Michele primarily practices Municipal, Land Use and Environmental Law and has represented local governments and private applicants in zoning, land use and environmental permitting. “I am honored to be recognized with an ATHENA Award by the Dutchess County Chamber Foundation Board. Thank you to everyone who contributed to my nomination for this very prestigious recognition,” said Michele L. Babcock, Esq.
Bestowed annually, the ATHENA Award is given to a member of the community who best embodies the ATHENA Leadership Model. The Model is unique in that it focuses on personal traits of strong, successful leaders. It captures the spirit and collaborative leadership style often exemplified in women leaders, while also recognizing the importance of traits such as courageous acts and fierce advocacy in the pursuit of excellence.
Michele has participated in the Pattern for Progress Fellows Program (Class of 2011), Leadership Orange (Class of 2011), and Leadership Sullivan (Class of 2018) where she served as Vice President. Michele also serves as a Board Member of Access: Supports for Living Foundation, the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce and the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Michele is currently Vice President of the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties and serves as their delegate to the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York. She is currently serving as a member of the Business Advisory Council to the Mount Saint Mary College School of Business and a member of the Orange County Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business Committee.
Michele received the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award by the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties and the Orange County Rising Star Award in 2009. She was recognized as one of Sullivan County’s Business and Professional Women of the Year in 2017 and was inducted into the Leadership Orange Hall of Fame in 2018. In 2019, Michele received the Distinguished Attorney Award from the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties and was recognized as an Outstanding Women in Law by Hofstra University which recognizes and celebrates women who have made meaningful and inspiring contributions to the legal community. Most recently, Michele was also selected by Hudson Valley Magazine as a 2020 Women in Business honoree.
Michele resides in New Windsor with her husband and their three young children.