Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan will receive the 2005 Sunshine Award from the Society of Professional Journalists during its national convention this month in Las Vegas.

Madigan was nominated by the Chicago Headline Club for appointing assistant attorney general Terry Mutchler, a former investigative reporter, as the state's first public access counselor.

The appointment was fulfillment of Madigan's campaign pledge to enforce the Open Meetings Act and Freedom of Information Act by helping public bodies to understand and observe Illinois access laws.

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Prof. Joan E. Steinman of the Chicago-Kent College of Law is the recipient of the 2005 Howard B. Eisenberg Award that will be presented Nov. 6 by the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers during a meeting in Washington, D.C.

The award was created in memory of the late Marquette University Law School dean to encourage publication of articles about appellate practice and procedure.

A past chair of the Association of American Law Schools Complex Litigation Committee, Steinman wrote “Irregulars: The Appellate Rights of Persons who Are Not Full-fledged Parties” for the Georgia Law Review.

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Chicago attorney Mary Dempsey, Chicago Public Library commissioner, will receive a 2005 Rerum Novarum Award from the St. Joseph College Seminary on Nov. 10 during its 15th annual Salute to Labor, Business and Government. The award recognizes outstanding commitment to promoting human labor rights.

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Michael K. Brandt, vice president and claims counsel of Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, received a President's Award from the Illinois Land Title Association in July for leadership and commitment. A past president, he chaired the Title Act Review Committee.

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Barry Maram, director of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, received an Award for Distinguished Service in State Government during the annual meeting of the National Governors Association. He is an adjunct professor at the Chicago-Kent College of Law and a member of the board of trustees.

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Springfield attorney R. Stephen Scott was installed in July as president of the American Association of Attorney-Certified Public Accountants. He is secretary of the ISBA Corporate Law Departments Section Council.

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Bannockburn attorney Myron E. Siegel has been reappointed to a six-year term on the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees. A member of the former State Board of Regents, he became the first chair of the NIU governing board when it was formed in 1996.

It's been said that some people make things happen, some people watch things happen, and some people just wonder what happened.

Peter Jay Birnbaum is somebody who makes things happen when he takes on a professional or personal challenge. His participation in a worthy initiative is likely to ensure its success.

President and CEO of Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund for the past 14 years, and a 24-year ATG mainstay, Birnbaum has made his mark professionally.

It was his interest in mentoring at-risk youths, however, that recently earned him personal recognition with a Making a Difference Award during an Abraham Lincoln Marovitz “My Hero Award” luncheon.

ATG has succeeded under Birnbaum's leadership in the precarious market of title insurance in residential real estate, and he has augmented his concern for protection of the home-buying public with tireless vigilance against the unauthorized practice of law.

He has served on ISBA task forces on UPL for the past decade, and he has supported legal battles that have been waged by the Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association, often in tandem with the state bar association.

But less visible than Birnbaum's business persona has been a personal commitment to nurturing Chicago's disadvantaged and underprivileged children so they may find opportunities for leadership in their communities.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago has been the major beneficiary of Birnbaum's humanitarian interest, and he truly has made things happen for countless youths.

Beside being president of Big Brothers Big Sisters from 1997 to 1999, he turned to his favorite pastime, golf, as a means of getting more professionals to participate in programs and provide financial support.

In seven years as chair of the organization's annual Pro-Celebrity Golf Classic, Birnbaum was able to add more than a half-million dollars to its mentoring and counseling efforts.

Beyond his tangible contributions is the quality of self-pride and motivation he has instilled during seven years as a Big Brother to Kyron Shaw, a recent graduate of Austin High school who attends classes at Triton College.

“Peter made me a better person,” Kyron told Illinois Bar Foundation executive director Susan M. Lewers, who nominated Birnbaum for the award. “He directed my attention from the streets and showed me a better way of life.”

Being a Big Brother may also have been a factor in Birnbaum's marriage to Juliet Mastaglio, who has been a Big Sister to Wanakee Jackson for nine years. (The young woman is now a student at the University of Maryland.)

Each December, Peter Birnbaum is a figurative Santa Claus as Attorneys' Title is host to a holiday party for children from its adopted kindergarten at Byrd Academy in Cabrini Green. They receive gifts and a performance by the Jesse White Tumblers.

Professionally, Birnbaum has received an ISBA Board of Governors Award, a Distinguished Service Award from the Chicago-Kent College of Law and a resolution from the state legislature.

Personally, the Making a Difference Award in the name of his own mentor, Judge Marovitz – coupled with testimony from Kyron Shaw at the ceremony – may rank just a bit higher.

The nomination was supported by Margaret C. Benson, director of the Chicago Volunteer Legal Services Foundation. Birnbaum was a founder of its Harold I. Levine Center for Housing, which helps families protect their homes from predatory lending lawsuits and foreclosures.

Citing his “all-around heart of gold,” Benson said Birnbaum “is a true mensch, actively and heavily involved in a variety of community and legal projects that benefit the less fortunate.”

ISBA past president Todd A. Smith (right) of Power, Rogers & Smith, Chicago, will receive the Medal of Excellence from the Loyola University School of Law during its reunion and alumni awards dinner.

The black-tie optional event is scheduled Saturday, Oct. 22, in the Grand Ball-room of the Westin River North Hotel, Chicago, with a 5:30 p.m. Mass, 6 p.m. reception and 7 p.m. dinner. For reservations, call (800) 556-9652.

Smith, who headed the state bar association in 1997-98, is the current president of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America. He is a 1976 Loyola Law graduate.

Other recipients are Loy-ola Law Prof. Thomas M. Haney, the Francis J. Rooney-St. Thomas More Award; Judge William T. Hart of U.S. District Court, the Distinguished Jurist Award, and assistant U.S. attorney Virginia M. Kendall, the St. Robert Bellarmine Award.

Members of the law classes of 1955, 1965, 1975, 1980 and 1990 will celebrate reunions.

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