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Bar News - October 18, 2002 NH Women's Bar Honors Linda Johnson, Deborah Cooper By: Lisa Segal THE NEW HAMPSHIRE Women's Bar Association presented its Marilla M. Ricker Achievement Award to attorneys Deborah J. Cooper and Linda S. Johnson at its 4th Annual Fall Reception Oct. 3. The Ricker Award, which is in its third year, is named in honor of Marilla Marks Ricker, who in 1890 won the landmark NH Supreme Court case allowing women to petition to practice law in this state, although she never so petitioned herself and thus was never admitted to the NH bar. The Ricker Award is presented to women lawyers who have achieved professional excellence, paved the way to success for other women lawyers, advanced opportunities for women in the legal profession or performed exemplary public service on behalf of women. Award winner Linda S. Johnson was the first woman elected to the Board of Governors of the NH Bar Association, having been elected treasurer in 1988. A graduate of Boston University Law School, she was admitted to the NH Bar in 1984. Johnson worked as a legal secretary, paralegal, law clerk and finally associate in the firm of Gottesman & Hollis, Nashua. In 1992, she became a partner at McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton in Manchester, where she originated and serves as head of the Employment Law Practice Group. Johnson is a nationally recognized speaker and trainer on issues of gender bias, sexual harassment, diversity and equality in the workplace. She also promotes professional development specifically for women. Johnson is president of the Manchester Area Human Resources Association and a member of the National Society of Human Resource Management. She is also an active member of the Employment Law Section of both the NH Bar and the American Bar Association. Jennifer L. Parent, immediate past president of the NH Women's Bar and a friend and colleague of Johnson, presented the Marilla M. Ricker Achievement Award to Johnson. She described Johnson as "exceptional and extraordinary" and said that Johnson, like award recipients before her, mirrors Marilla Ricker's "spirit, dedication to the legal profession and dedication to women's rights." "Linda has a life full of work dedicated to promoting and furthering women's rights," said Parent. "It's rare that you find someone that you want to emulate as a professional and a woman, but Linda is just such a person." In receiving the award, Johnson said that one reason she has been a successful attorney, wife and mother is her philosophy of treating every day as an opportunity. "The balancing act I do on a daily basis is both exhilarating and exhausting," she said. Johnson said that, especially early in her career, convincing her employers to accommodate a working mother's schedule has been a challenge. "It can work, let me show you" are words she has often found herself repeating throughout her career, she said. Johnson said that receiving the Ricker Award was "like winning an Oscar." "I will always treasure the honor you've given me today," she said. Deborah J. Cooper was one of the first women hired in the NH Attorney General's Office. After earning her law degree from Boston University and being admitted to the NH Bar in 1976, Cooper began working for the AG's Office as an attorney and was later named assistant attorney general in the civil division under Attorneys General Tom Rath and Greg Smith. During her tenure, she also worked under now U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter and she held the position of deputy attorney general under Greg Smith. In that position, she represented several state agencies. Following her seven-year career at the AG's Office, Cooper became a partner in the firm that is now Daschbach, Cooper, Hotchkiss and Csatari, Lebanon. In addition to being a member of the NH Bar and the NH Trial Lawyers Association, Cooper is also a Fellow of the NH Bar Foundation and a member of the Legislative Committee to Study Residency Laws. She is also active in a number of community organizations, including serving on the boards of the Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital, the Hitchcock Foundation, David's House, the NH Charitable Foundation and the United Developmental Services Human Rights Committee. NH Bar President Martha Van Oot, a friend of Cooper's and former colleague in the AG's Office, presented the Ricker Award to Cooper. Van Oot said that Cooper "led by doing as a mentor and lawyer." "Deb is not only an extraordinary attorney, but also showed great courage through two serious illnesses and great personal loss," added Van Oot. Cooper echoed Johnson's thoughts on the importance and challenge for female professionals to strike a balance between family and career. On having successfully struck that balance, Cooper said, "I'm very proud of where I've gotten and how I've gotten here."
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