Preston hall on the Elisabeth Haub School of Law campus in White Plains NY

Philip B. Blank Memorial Lecture on Attorney Ethics

The Philip B. Blank Memorial Lecture on Attorney Ethics was established by the family, friends and colleagues of the late Philip B. Blank, Associate Dean for External Affairs and Professor of Law at Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. In honor of Dean Blank's commitment to legal ethics, the Blank Lecture has presented distinguished members of the legal community recognized for their leadership in the area of attorney ethics and practice.

Dean Blank was a member of Haub Law's faculty from 1979 until his death in 1989. He taught courses in Professional Responsibility, Wills, Estate Planning, and Legal Methods. He is remembered as an outstanding teacher of the law and a caring mentor to his students. A model citizen of Westchester County, Dean Blank served as Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals for the Town of Mount Pleasant and held leadership positions in Westchester County and White Plains Bar Associations.

Past Blank Lectures

Andrea Kupfer Schneider

Director of the Kukin Program for Conflict Resolution at Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University
March 1, 2023
"The Conflict in Arbitrator Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Public Judges or Private Neutrals?"

Irene Oritseweyinmi Joe

Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law
April 4, 2022
“Learning from Mistakes: Ethical Considerations for Public Defenders"

Mimi Rocah

Pace Law Distinguished Criminal Justice Fellow, Former Federal Prosecutor and MSNBC and NBC News Legal Analyst
March 27, 2018
“The Rule of Law in the Age of Trump"

Angela Davis

Professor of Law, American University
September 6, 2017
“The Prosecutor's Ethical Duty to End Mass Incarceration"

Susan Carle

Professor of Law and Pauline Ruyle Moore Scholar, Washington College of Law, American University
February 10, 2016
“Lawyers’ Ethics and Early Racial Justice Reform: A Story and Conclusions."

Scott Cummings, Professor, UCLA School of Law

Scott L. Cummings

Professor, UCLA School of Law
March 16, 2015
"Lawyers and Social Movements"

Deborah Rhode, Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law

Deborah L. Rhode

Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law, Director of the Center on the Legal Profession, Director of the Program in Law and Social Entrepreneurship
December 3, 2013
"Crisis in the Profession"

Renée Knake

Associate Professor, Michigan State University College of Law; Co-director of the Kelley Institute of Ethics and the Legal Profession
March 18, 2013
"Democratizing the Delivery of Legal Services"

Justice Elizabeth Lacy

Senior Justice on the Virginia Supreme Court
November 10, 2011
"20/20 Vision for 2020 Ethics."

Stephen J. Friedman

Seventh president of Pace University, served for three years as dean of Pace University School of Law, and president of Pace University Board of Trustees
October 13, 2010
"The Ethical Imperatives for Lawyers."

November 11, 2009
Robert H. Mundheim, Esq.
Of Counsel to Shearman & Sterling, LLP, in New York City, and former Dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School
"Enduring Ethics, Changing Ethics Rules: Is there a Contradiction?"
January 27, 2009
Alvin J. Bronstein, Esq.
Pace Law School Practitioner-in-Residence
"Ethical Obligations When the Client is a Worthy Cause."
March 4, 2008
Steven C. Krane, Esq.
Partner, Proskauer Rose LLP
"Taking the Red Pill: A Search for the Intersection Between Ethics and Morality"
March 5, 2007
Jonathan G. Blattmachr
Partner, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP
"Suicide of the Guardians: The Executive Branch, Tax Regulations, and the Attorney-Client Relationship"
February 28, 2006
Louis A. Craco
Chairman, New York State Judicial Institute on Professionalism in the Law
"Carpe Diem: An Opportunity to Reclaim Lawyers' Independence"
September 21, 2004
Robert J. Grey Jr.
American Bar Association President
"Legal Ethics in the 21st Century"
November 12, 2003
James B. Comey
United States Attorney, Southern District of New York
"Fighting Terrorism and Protecting Civil Liberties"
January 22, 2003
Stanley L. Cohen, '83
Attorney of Law
"Deconstructing Ethical Considerations 2-26, 2-27, 2-28, and 2-29: A textual and historical analysis"
October 11, 2001
Professor William H. Simon
Saunders Professor of Law, Stanford University
Visiting Professor, Columbia University
"The Role of the Public Official's Lawyer: A Case Study from the Clinton Era"
October 11, 2000
Carrie Menkel-Meadow
Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center
"Private Lives and Professional Responsibilities? The Relationship of Personal Morality to Lawyering and Professional Ethics"
November 9, 1999
The Honorable Roger J. Miner
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
"Professional Responsibility in Appellate Practice: A View from the Bench"
April 16, 1998
Ronald K. Noble
Professor of Law, New York University School of Law; Former Under Secretary for Enforcement, U.S. Department of the Treasury
"Investigating Leaks: A Necessary Undertaking for Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr"
April 3, 1997
Bill Wagner, Esq.
Past President, Association of Trial Lawyers of America; Senior Partner, Wagner, Vaughan & McLaughlin, P.A.
"Legal Ethics in a Confrontational Society"
March 28, 1996
Monroe H. Freedman
Howard Lichtenstein Distinguished Professor of Legal Ethics, Hofstra University School of Law
"Ethical Obligations of Prosecutors in Death Penalty Cases"
April 27, 1995
Linda Fairstein, Esq.
Chief, Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit, New York County District Attorney's Office
"Sex Crimes and the Media"
April 5, 1994
The Honorable E. Leo Milonas
Chief Administrative Judge, State of New York
"Matrimonial Lawyers and Ethical Problems"
Nov. 19, 1992
The Honorable Robert Johnson
Bronx County District Attorney
April 8, 1992
Stephen Gillers
Professor of Law, New York University School of Law
"The Owl and the Fox: The Transformation of Legal Work in a Commodity Culture"
May 3, 1990
The Honorable Guy J. Mangano
Presiding Justice, Appellate Division, 2d Dept.