PITTSBURGH, May 1, 2014 — Burns White Special Ethics Counsel Forest “Jack” Bowman is to receive West Virginia University College of Law’s 2014 Justitia Officium Award, its highest honor. Mr. Bowman, along with fellow award recipient Judge O.C. Spaulding, will be honored at the law school’s commencement ceremony on May 10.
Presented annually, the Justicia Officium Award recognizes outstanding contributions and service to the legal profession. This annual award was established in 1978 in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the university’s College of Law. An individual bronze plaque is created for each recipient and displayed in the lobby of the law school.
Mr. Bowman, the Jackson Kelly Professor of Law Emeritus at WVU College of Law, taught at the school for 23 years before retiring in 2002. During his tenure there, he was awarded several honors, including Professor of the Year by seven graduating classes, University Professor of the Year and Professor of the Year for all of higher education in West Virginia by the Faculty Merit Foundation of West Virginia.
Mr. Bowman’s many professional accomplishments include being named a fellow of the American Bar Foundation, an honor bestowed upon only one-third of one percent of all America’s lawyers; a three-time recipient of the West Virginia State Bar’s Certificate of Merit; a recipient of the Harrison Tweed Award for outstanding contributions to continuing legal education in America; a WVU Order of Vandalia inductee for his far-reaching contributions to the university, and a WVU Outstanding Alumnus.