THE NH BAR FOUNDATION will present the annual Robert E. Kirby Award to state Deputy Attorney General Kelly A. Ayotte at its Annual Dinner, to be held Thursday, May 27, at C.R. Sparks in Bedford.

The Kirby Award is presented to an attorney 35 years old or younger, recognizing outstanding professionalism and civility. The Foundation established the award in 1996 to honor the memory of Bob Kirby, a young lawyer "of great skill, civility, and good humor" who died that year at the age of 35. Kirby was an attorney with the Concord law firm of Gallagher, Callahan & Gartrell.

The Kirby Award recipient – chosen by a committee of judges from the U.S. District and NH Supreme, Superior, probate, and district courts – is a young attorney who demonstrates the traits of civility, courtesy, perspective, and excellent advocacy "that are the inevitable characteristics of our best lawyers."

Ayotte earned her law degree from Villanova University in 1993. She was admitted to the NH Bar the same year and joined the McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton law firm after clerking for state Supreme Court Justice Sherman Horton for a year. Ayotte joined the Office of the Attorney General in 1998, being appointed as an assistant attorney general, then as senior assistant attorney general in 2000. She became chief of the Homicide Unit in 2000, where she was responsible for the most complex homicide cases, including the case of State v Parker and State v. Tulloch. At the beginning of Governor Craig Benson’s term, Ayotte served as the governor’s legal counsel until she was appointed to the deputy attorney general position in July 2003.

Last year’s Kirby Award winner, Jennifer L. Parent, an attorney and former colleague of Ayotte’s, described this year’s recipient as "a dedicated and aggressive advocate who possesses a great sense of humor and a perspective to maintain civility in all that she does."

"As a public defender, I have dealt with Kelly Ayotte on many matters," says Barbara Keshen, with NH Public Defender. "She is unfailingly professional and courteous. Her word is her bond. She advocates her positions passionately, and is a fierce competitor, yet she is never dogmatic."

Ayotte says that she feels "deeply honored and humbled" to be named this year’s Kirby Award winner.

For more information about the NHBF’s Annual Dinner, contact Angela Yanski at 224-6942, ext. 253, or ayanski@nhbar.org.

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