HARRISBURG (Oct. 8, 2020) — The Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Commission on Women in the Profession (WIP) will present its annual Anne X. Alpern Award to Philadelphia attorney Elizabeth (Lisa) Detwiler, general counsel and chief compliance officer for FS Investment Solutions LLC, at a virtual meeting on Nov. 6.
The Alpern Award is presented annually to a female lawyer or judge who demonstrates excellence in the legal profession and who makes a significant professional impact on women in the law. Established in 1994, the award was named for Anne X. Alpern, Pennsylvania’s attorney general in 1959 and the first woman state attorney general in the nation.
One nominator noted that Detwiler ‘is universally respected for her incredible work ethic, strategic thinking, strong moral compass, even keeled nature and willingness to speak her mind.’ Another added that she ‘is the modern-day Anne X. Alpern: a friend, mentor and legal scholar.’
Detwiler is a 30-plus-year veteran of the Pennsylvania legal profession. She is an original member of the WIP and served as its co-chair and a member of the executive council, enacting programs and initiatives to create a level playing field for women lawyers.
Throughout her career, she has focused on the development and mentoring of women both inside and outside the legal profession. She is president of the Forum of Executive Women, an organization dedicated to increasing the number of women in professional leadership roles in the Philadelphia region and building a pipeline for the next generation of women business leaders. She is also a founding member of the Franklin Square's Women's Initiative, where she mentors and offers guidance to women lawyers at Franklin Square, providing advice and counsel to younger lawyers who are navigating other in-house positions.
Prior to joining FS Investment Solutions, Detwiler was senior managing counsel at BNY Mellon and general counsel of BNY Mellon's Lockwood family of companies. She was a partner at Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis, where she co-chaired the firm's financial services group, chief counsel of the Pa. Department of Banking and an attorney at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Some of Detwiler’s professional achievements include representing the Department of Banking’s interests across the commonwealth during the savings and loan crisis, the introduction of interstate banking and branching, establishing the first internet bank in the United States by creatively applying precedent from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to formulate a foundation to obtain regulatory approvals, and drafting and commenting on new business statutes and regulations through her work with the PBA Business Law Section.
Within the PBA, Detwiler was chair of the Business Law Section, chair of the Committee on Pennsylvania Electronic Transactions Act and a member of the Investment Committee. She is also a member of the American Bar Association and the Philadelphia Bar Association and its Philadelphia Compliance Roundtable.
Her community leadership and involvement includes terms on the boards of Philadelphia VIP, the Committee of Seventy, Westover School and the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, among others.
Detwiler is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College South Hadley and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.
Founded in 1895, the Pennsylvania Bar Association strives to promote justice, professional excellence and respect for the law; improve public understanding of the legal system; facilitate access of legal services; and serve the lawyer members of the state’s largest organized bar association.