Monte E. Frank receives John Eldred Shields Professional Service Award from Connecticut Bar Association
HARTFORD, CT January 23, 2024 — Pullman & Comley, LLC is pleased to announce that Monte E. Frank, co-chair of the firm’s Litigation practice, has received the John Eldred Shields Professional Service Award from the Connecticut Bar Association (CBA).
Established in 1981 in honor of past CBA president John Eldred Shields, the John Eldred Shields Professional Service Award is presented to a CBA member who has performed outstanding service through or on behalf of the CBA, for the benefit of the legal community and the community at large for numerous years. Monte will be honored at the CBA’s annual awards dinner on April 3 at the Aqua Turf Club in Plantsville.
“The one word that most accurately describes both Monte’s personal and professional lives is service,” says Lee D. Hoffman, chair of Pullman & Comley. “Service to his clients, service to his community and service to the CBA and the legal profession. Monte works tirelessly for myriad causes and epitomizes the qualities and reputation of a trusted and respected counselor and advisor."
Monte is an active member of the legal community and serves in leadership roles at both the state and national level. He is an advocate for democracy reform and works to improve elections and bring accountability to government. He is a past president of both the New England Bar Association and the CBA, where he currently serves as the chair of the Federal Judiciary Committee.
Monte serves on the American Bar Association’s Advisory Commission to the Task Force on Democracy, serves as a Special Advisor to the ABA’s Committee on Gun Violence, and chairs its policy subcommittee. He has successfully presented many resolutions to the ABA’s House of Delegates, and has worked on amicus briefs to the United States Supreme Court.
A Fellow of both the American Bar Foundation and the Connecticut Bar Foundation, Monte also served on the Second Circuit Courts Committee of the Federal Bar Council; the Commission on Judicial Compensation for the State of Connecticut Supreme Court and on the Executive Council and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee (co-chair) for the National Conference of Bar Presidents.
In 2018, he ran for lieutenant governor as running mate to Oz Griebel.
For many years, Monte appeared in various media for his work on gun violence prevention. He has also written numerous op-eds on gun violence, co-authoring many with U.S. senators and members of Congress that have been published by Connecticut, national and international media outlets. Monte has written numerous op-eds on election reforms in the Hartford Courant and New Haven Register and sat on many panels related to the topic at the Connecticut Legal Conference, the University of Connecticut School of Law, Quinnipiac Law School, The National Conference of Bar Presidents, the American Bar Association and the New York County District Attorney.
An avid cyclist, Monte competes on the road and in mountain bike and cyclocross races throughout the Northeast and Canada. He represented the United States at the 2013 and 2017 World Maccabiah Games in Israel and has won six medals, including four silver medals and two bronze medals. He founded and led Team 26 on the Sandy Hook Ride on Washington (2013-2019).
Past recipients of the John Eldred Shields Professional Service Award at Pullman & Comley include former firm chairman James (Tim) Shearin in 2009 and Frederic S. Ury in 2013.
About Pullman & Comley
Pullman & Comley is one of Connecticut’s largest law firms and, for more than 100 years, has provided a wide range of legal services to clients in the New England region, as well as throughout the United States and internationally. Pullman & Comley’s major practice areas include business organizations and finance; government finance; health care; labor, employment law and employee benefits; litigation; property tax and valuation; real estate, energy, environmental and land use; and trusts and estates. The firm has offices in Bridgeport, Hartford, Waterbury and Westport, Connecticut; White Plains, New York; Springfield, Massachusetts; and Wakefield, Rhode Island. The firm is an active member of the Law Firm Alliance, an international affiliation of law firms. For more information, please visit www.pullcom.com.