Annual Awards

Distinguished Graduate Award: Paul Abbate ‘94

Appointed as Deputy Director in February 2021, Paul oversees all FBI domestic and international investigative and intelligence activities. He has notably served as Executive Assistant Director of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch where he oversaw all FBI criminal and cyber investigations worldwide, international operations, critical incident response, and victim assistance. Among other positions, he has worked in the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, led numerous field offices across the country, and served in oversees deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya. Prior to his role as Deputy Director, Paul served as Associate Deputy Director where he was responsible for the management of all FBI business and administrative personnel and functions.

Public Service Award: The Hon. Sheridan Moore ‘78

The Honorable Sheridan Moore graduated with a B.S in Education from the University of Bridgeport in 1975. She received her JD from UConn School of Law in 1978. Judge Moore also received a Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Bridgeport in 2015. Judge Moore spent two years at Connecticut Legal Services, six years as a Public Defender in Waterbury and twelve years in solo private practice in Naugatuck. She was appointed to the Superior Court bench on Aprill 22, 1998 by Gov. John Rowland. Judge Moore served in multiple jurisdictions as a judge, senior judge and currently as a judge trial referee. Judge Moore coached girls high school and college basketball for 25 years in the Waterbury area and in 2014 was the recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Bridgeport. She was also inducted into the UConn School of Law Gallery of Pioneers in 2019.

Distinguished Service Award: Paul Chill ‘85

Paul Chill joined the UConn School of Law faculty in 1988 and has taught clinical programs focusing on child protection, civil rights, disability, mental health law, and most recently mediation, as well as a variety of nonclinical courses. He served for eight years as the school’s inaugural Associate Dean for Experiential Education and for six as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, and is the only graduate of the Law School to have held those positions. A lawsuit he brought, Pamela B. v. Ment, helped transform the state’s juvenile court system and led to his being named one of “Ten Lawyers and Judges Who Made a Difference” in 1998 by the Connecticut Law Tribune. An honors graduate of Wesleyan University, before attending law school he worked with serious juvenile offenders as a state youth services officer; after graduating from UConn Law, he practiced plaintiff’s employment law with what was then Garrison, Kahn, Silbert & Arterton in New Haven. A past recipient of both the Connecticut Law Review Award and the Perry Zirkel ’76 teacher-of-the-year award, he currently teaches Legal Profession and serves as second vice chair of the CBA Standing Committee on Professional Ethics.

Emily Gait ‘19
Emily Gait is an Assistant Attorney General and Co-Special Counsel for Reproductive Rights at the Connecticut Office of the Attorney General. She joined the AG’s office in 2021 after clerking on the Connecticut Supreme Court (J. D’Auria) and the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut (J. Shea). As a member of the Special Litigation Section, Emily defends the constitutional officers of the state and the judicial branch in matters concerning state elections, constitutional challenges, probate appeals, and negotiations to avoid litigation. Since her appointment to Special Counsel in June 2023, Emily seeks to protect access to reproductive rights through supporting legislation, building a coalition of internal and external advocates, joining national initiatives, and proactively limiting deceptive information that targets vulnerable populations.

Benjamin Haldeman ‘16
Ben Haldeman is a staff attorney at the New Haven Legal Assistance Association (NHLAA), which he joined as an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow in 2017. He is also a Visiting Clinical Lecturer at Yale Law School, where he co-teaches the Immigrant Rights Clinic. He practices primarily immigration law, with a focus on defending Connecticut residents in removal proceedings, and especially those detained by ICE. He is committed to advancing immigrant rights in Connecticut and works regularly with immigrant-led organizations throughout the state to support their members and build power in immigrant communities. Prior to NHLAA, he clerked for Justice Richard Palmer of the Connecticut Supreme Court, and before that, he was a high-school English teacher. Outside of NHLAA, he coaches wrestling at Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven, and he serves on the board of Elena's Light, a New Haven-based nonprofit that provides a wide range of services for recent immigrants. He received the Pro Bono Champion Award of the Connecticut Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association in 2020.

Mallori Thompson ‘21
Mallori Deanna Thompson is returning to Robinson & Cole LLP as an associate attorney in its business litigation practice group. She was a recipient of the firm's 2023 Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Award. Previously, she was a judicial law clerk for Chief Justice Richard A. Robinson of the Connecticut Supreme Court and Judge Victor A. Bolden of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. While a student at UConn Law, she received a Human Rights Certificate, successfully represented an asylum seeker in a removal proceeding as a student representative in the Asylum & Human Rights Clinic, and completed the Community Justice Fellowship at Greater Hartford Legal Aid. She also served as the first Black Editor-in-Chief of the Connecticut Law Review. She is currently the President of the George W. Crawford Black Bar Association and the Vice Chair of the Connecticut Bar Association's Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee. She has also been in the United States Army Reserves for over ten years and is currently a Captain in the Medical Service Corps.