MULLIN SELECTED FOR OBA LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD, PRAISED FOR LEADERSHIP IN PROFESSION

The OBA is proud to present Mike Mullin with our Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2023 Law Day Lunch on Tuesday, May 2nd, in recognition for all the work and leadership Mike has shown through the years. As just the 12th person to receive the Award since its founding in 2001, Mike is joining a short but distinguished list of honorees within the Omaha Bar Association.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was initiated at the 2001 Law Day. The criteria under consideration for the award includes: (1) Exemplary service to the profession, (2) Support and service to the Omaha Bar Association, (3) Innovative contributions to improving justice, and (4) Longstanding commitment to mentoring in the law.

Mike has shown exemplary service to the profession as the most prolific mediator Nebraska has ever seen, with over 4,600 mediations completed to date, and a settle rate of approximately 90%. Mike’s mediation schedule is legendary, with 1 to 2 mediations a day up to 6 and a half days a week. In 2022, Mike set his record for longest mediation at 23 hours, thankfully on Zoom. (The unfortunate victim of that marathon mediation: the dinner date Mike had scheduled with his wife Joani, fellow OBA Past President Steve Bruckner, and his wife Anne.)

Mike’s dogged pursuit of mediated settlements in the most contentious of cases has no doubt saved the clients he has mediated many millions of dollars in attorney’s fees. Beyond that, however, Mullin is keenly aware of the important role he plays in the process. “We're seeing parties at what may be their worst whether they've lost a loved one, or caused the loss of someone else, or maybe their business is a risk of going under if they lose the case,” said Mike in an OBA “Bar Talk” interview in 2022. “You have to realize that these people are going through their worst times and you have to get them through it. It's almost kind of like being a midwife in a sense because you have to get people through the difficult process and get them to an ending that hopefully is a positive one for them.”

Mike’s service to the OBA is without question as well, serving on the Executive Council and then as OBA President in 2001-2002. Mike is still active in OBA activities, and continues to take on leadership roles in the House of Delegates of the NSBA, and previously served on the Board of Directors of the Nebraska State Bar Foundation. In a trend that doesn’t go unnoticed by the OBA, Mullin also did a tour of duty as President of the Omaha Barrister’s Club, the legal comedy troupe, in 1984-1985.

In many ways, what Mike Mullin has done in pushing effective mediation to the fore in Nebraska litigation has been a tremendous innovative leap towards improving legal outcomes in our community. While Mike is not alone in the mediation sphere—fellow OBA Past Presidents Mike Kinney and John Brownrigg have also been major actors in the area as well the volume of cases and scope of impact is greatest with Mullin.

Mentoring others in the profession is something that Mike has spent a large amount of time on, and the effects of that leadership and education will be felt for generations to come. Whether it’s a fellow mediator wanting to break down their last mediation to look for areas of improvement, a young attorney seeking advice for how to break into mediation, or just a colleague asking for direction on a case, Mike is someone who is always there to listen and offer advice in whatever way he can.

The OBA congratulates Mike Mullin on this well-deserved recognition, and thank him for all that he has done and continues to do for our legal community here in Omaha.

2023 LAW DAY THEME: CORNERSTONES OF DEMOCRACY: CIVICS, CIVILITY, & COLLABORATION / JAY JACKSON KEYNOTE SPEAKER AT LOCAL LAW DAY LUNCH

Law Day is an annual event, originally conceived in 1957, when American Bar Association President Charles Rhynes envisioned a special national day to mark our commitment to the Rule of Law. The following year, President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the first Law Day. Law Day was made official in 1961 when Congress issued a joint resolution designating May 1 as the official date for celebrating Law Day.

Law Day is nationally sponsored by the American Bar Association to promote the legal profession and justice system in our country. The ABA encourages local bar associations to promote the day in their own community. For over 40 years, the Omaha Bar Association has held its own Law Day Lunch celebration, and works in conjunction with its Law Day Committee and with the Nebraska Paralegal Association, Nebraska Court Reporters Association, and The Daily Record, coordinate a month-long series of activities throughout the metro area.

The Law Day Theme the American Bar Association chose for 2023 is Cornerstones of Democracy: Civics, Civility, and Collaboration. In a statement released with the theme, the ABA states,

The United States is at a critical moment in its national history. We face a country divided over many issues—voting rights, policing, public health, and climate change to name a few. We have experienced decreasing faith in institutions and a growing distrust of one another. We have seen attacks on the justice system, the norms of our democracy, and the rule of law. These challenges are aggravated by a general lack of understanding of civics and by incivility in our public discourse. In this time of division, the legal profession must lead the way in promoting civics, civility, and collaboration the cornerstones of our democracy—to restore confidence in our democratic institutions, in the judicial system, and to protect the rule of law. We invite all the people of the United States to join us in rebuilding trust in our institutions, respect for one another, and our willingness to collaborate to address the challenges that face our nation.