Hon. E. Jeannette Ogden '83 - Jaeckle Award 2025

Hon. E. Jeannette Ogden ’83 received the 2025 Edwin F. Jaeckle Award in recognition of his contributions to the law and his public service in local, state and federal government. The Jaeckle Award is the highest honor UB School of Law and the Law Alumni Association can bestow.

Justice Ogden’s judicial career has spanned nearly 30 years, beginning with her appointment to Buffalo City Court in 1995. She subsequently served as acting Erie County Court judge and as acting Erie County Family Court judge, giving her the distinction of being the first African-American woman to serve as a family court judge in Western New York. In 2014, she was elected to the New York State Supreme Court bench, and in 2022, she was elevated to the Appellate Division, Fourth Judicial Department.

Prior to joining the judiciary, Justice Ogden worked as a trial lawyer for CIGNA Insurance Companies. She was also a former prosecutor with the Erie County District Attorney’s Office and a former assistant Erie County Attorney.

A 1983 graduate of UB School of Law, Justice Ogden has been actively involved with the law school and its students in many ways, including as an adjunct faculty member, a past president of the UB Law Alumni Association, and a loyal participant in the law school’s mentor program for 1L students.  

She was the recipient of the UB Law Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award for community service in 2010; and the law school’s Students of Color Trailblazer Award in 2001. At the Class of 2022’s Commencement Ceremony, she was presented the Dean’s Medal for her outstanding achievements and her commitment to justice and the rule of law.

Justice Ogden is a faculty member of the New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics; a member of the Richard C. Failla LGBTQ+ Commission of the New York Courts; and a member of the Hon. Betty Weinberg Ellerin Judicial Committee on Women in the Courts and its Gender Fairness Subcommittee in the 8th Judicial District. She is president-elect of the New York Women Judges Association Inc.; and a member of several local bar associations and community leadership boards. She regularly appears as a speaker for civic and community groups, public schools, and churches and is well known for her allegiance to her motto, “lift as you climb.”

Mistress of Ceremonies: Stephanie A. Mack '08.

Remarks presented by Dr. Satish K. Tripathi, President, University at Buffalo; S. Todd Brown, Dean, University at Buffalo School of Law; Jamila A. Lee ’15, Vice Dean of Student Affairs, School of Law; Hon. Gerald J. Whalen ’83, Presiding Justice, NYS Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Fourth Department.

The award was co-presentation by Jamila A. Lee ’15 and Robert C. Brucato ’90.