HARRISBURG, Pa. (March 14, 2024) — The Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Commission on Women in the Profession (WIP) will present the H. Robert Fiebach Award for the Promotion of Women in the Law to JBM Legal LLC, Pittsburgh, on May 8 at the WIP Annual Conference during the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Annual Meeting in Hershey.
The award, formerly known as the Promotion of Women in the Law Award, was created in 2017 to honor Pennsylvania law firms and solo practitioners, corporate law departments and other organizations providing legal services that have instituted programs or initiatives that help women lawyers continue and advance in their careers while maintaining a work/life balance.
In 2019, it was renamed to honor H. Robert Fiebach, who was the 1993-94 PBA president and who identified among his top presidential priorities the incorporation of more women into the legal profession, the PBA and PBA leadership roles.
JBM Legal founder Jacqueline B. Martinez has instituted a work model that supports the retention and advancement of women in the law and a positive work/life balance. Martinez offers flexible work schedules and remote work options so employees have time to tend to young children, elderly parents or other family and personal needs. She promotes well-being and engagement in the work environment by providing lunchroom meals that encourage employees to interact and support each other professionally and personally. To help mitigate stress, Martinez pays for bus and parking passes, and occasionally encourages employees to bring pets to work.
Since its founding in 2002, JBM Legal has employed and mentored numerous female associates and clerks who began their careers at the firm. Some former employees have become field office directors and asylum officers for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, education directors for the American Immigration Lawyers Association, solo practitioners and university professors.
JBM Legal is full-service firm that started with a focus on immigration and nationality law to assist clients with diverse legal matters, including deportation and removal, citizenship and naturalization, and employment visas. The firm later added a General Practice Group to assist clients with business development, criminal defense and family matters. In addition, the firm added JBM Language Services LLC to offer document translation and interpreter services for individuals, educational institutions, government agencies and other entities. The firm has offices in Pittsburgh and Los Angeles.
Within the PBA, Martinez serves as secretary on the Board of Governors, vice chair of the Bylaws Committee, co-chair of the Immigration Law Committee, co-vice chair of the Planning Committee and co-chair of the Minority Bar Committee Governance and Membership Development subcommittees. She is also active in the Commission on Women in the Profession, serving on several committees, including the Quality of Life Committee.
Active in her local bar association, Martinez serves as a member of the Allegheny County Bar Association Board of Governors and Fellows Committee. Within the Allegheny Bar Foundation, Martinez founded the John Alan Meehan Citizenship Institute, which provides pro bono legal representation to applicants for U.S. citizenship.