The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law is proud to announce the recipients of the 2025 Alumni Honors to be presented during Alumni Weekend on Thursday, April 24.
Every year, Maryland Carey Law recognizes graduates for their leadership, achievements, and impact on Maryland Carey Law and the legal profession. In 2025, the law school will present the following awards: the Distinguished Graduate Award, the Mary Ellen Barbera ’84 Judicial Excellence Award, the Benjamin L. Cardin ’67 Public Service Award, the Star Award, and the Rising Star Award. Honorees are selected by members of the Alumni Board Awards Committee and confirmed by the Alumni Board.
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The Distinguished Graduate Award is presented to a Maryland Carey Law alum who has achieved prominence through professional excellence and service to the community. This year’s recipient is Kenneth Thompson ’76.
Thompson is a partner in the Baltimore office of Venable LLP. His practice focuses on commercial and product liability litigation.
A 1976 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Thompson is an active member of the Baltimore community. He served as chair and co-chair of several transition committees for two Baltimore mayors and was appointed by the chief judge of the U.S. District Court of Maryland to serve as the lead monitor for the Baltimore City Police Department Consent Decree.
He is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the American Board of Trial Advocates, and a member of the Maryland Appellate Judicial Nomination Commission. From 1999 to 2007, Thompson was chairman of the Judicial Nominating Commission for Baltimore City. In addition, he served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Baltimore Community Foundation from June 2012 to March 2024.
Thompson has received many recognitions during his high-profile career from organizations including The American Lawyer, The Best Lawyers in America, Benchmark Litigation, Local Litigation Star, Chambers USA, and Super Lawyers. In 2007, he was awarded the Daily Record’s Leadership in Law honor.
The Benjamin L. Cardin ’67 Public Service Award is presented to an alum who has demonstrated significant and substantial contributions to furthering ideals of public service in the law. This year’s honoree is Chelsea Ortega ’12.
Ortega is a partner at the law firm of Santoni, Vocci & Ortega, LLC in Baltimore County, Maryland. Her practice primarily focuses on issues involving tenants and consumers’ rights.
A 2012 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Ortega was a member of the Journal of Business & Technology Law and a writing fellow in the Legal Writing Center.
Highly involved in the legal community, Ortega is on the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service Board of Directors and the Maryland Legal Aid Board of Directors. She is the Maryland state chair for the National Association of Consumer Advocates and on the Innovations in Tiered Legal Services Task Force.
Ortega has given more than a dozen presentations and trainings on various topics to attorneys and advocates across the country and has testified before the Maryland legislature relating to the enactment of tenants’ rights and consumer protection legislation.
Throughout her career, she has consistently provided pro bono services as a volunteer attorney with the Pro Bono Resource Center and Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service, offering her professional skills and guidance to individuals without charge.
The Mary Ellen Barbera ’84 Judicial Excellence Award is presented to an alum who exemplifies the highest standards of judicial excellence, displays extraordinary courage, energy, and tenacity in the handling of controversial and difficult cases as well as embodies strength of character, service, and competence as a jurist, lawyer, and public servant. This year’s honoree is the Hon. Sean Wallace ’85.
Judge Wallace is president of the United Nations Dispute Tribunal, elected by the UN General Assembly in 2022. He is the first American to have been elected as a full-time judge of the Dispute Tribunal and is based in Nairobi, Kenya, at the UN headquarters for Africa.
Judge Wallace previously served as a judge on the Maryland Circuit Court for the Seventh Judicial Circuit and on the Maryland Court of Special Appeals by special designation. During his circuit court tenure, Judge Wallace was president of the American College of Business Court Judges, president of the Maryland Circuit Judges Association, and chair of the Maryland Judiciary’s Complex Litigation Committee. He was also active in training judges from across the country and the globe, including on the adjunct faculty of the National College of District Attorneys.
A 1985 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Judge Wallace served on both the Maryland Law Review and the Moot Court Board.
Judge Wallace is the recipient of the Caritas Service Award from Catholic Charities of Washington DC and the National Outstanding Eagle Scout Award. He is a fellow of the Advanced Science and Technology Adjudication Resource (ASTAR) Center.
The Star Award (awarded in alternating years) recognizes the unsung heroes among the alumni population. Those alumni who volunteer for Maryland Carey Law behind the scenes with little fanfare, and who are steadfast in their support, loyal in their hearts, and deserving of special recognition. This year’s honoree is Barry Gogel ’97.
Gogel is managing member of the Baltimore office of Rifkin, Weiner, Livingston, LLC, where he has practiced since 2013. He represents businesses, professional athletes, politicians, artists, and large institutions, and has litigated a wide variety of complex tort and business lawsuits. He also serves as a mediator.
Previously, Gogel was a principal with the Law Offices of Arnold M. Weiner, a senior associate with Weiner & Weltchek, and an associate with Ober, Kaler, Grimes and Shriver, currently known as Baker Donelson.
A 1997 Maryland Carey Law graduate, Gogel has been an adjunct professor since 2010, teaching Negotiations and Sports and the Law and coaching the Alternative Dispute Resolution Team. In 2015, he was named Adjunct Professor of the Year.
Gogel has served as the chairman of the board for Maryland Youth and the Law, where he remains a board member. He also served on the boards for the American Red Cross, Central Maryland Chapter, and the Education Outreach Committee of the Jemicy School in Owings Mills, Maryland.
Gogel received the Daily Record’s award for Leadership in Law in 2020.
The Rising Star Award recognizes a recent graduate whose exemplary contributions of service and leadership, either professionally or at Maryland Carey Law, have brought credit to the graduate and this institution. This year’s honoree is Chukwukpee Nzegwu ’20.
Nzegwu is an attorney at Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP in the Baltimore and Washington offices in the complex business litigation and white-collar defense and criminal investigations practice groups. Nzegwu also engages in pro bono matters, handling criminal record expungement, child custody cases, and unpaid wage claims, among others.
Previously, he served as a judicial intern to the Hon. Judge George L. Russell, III in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.
A 2020 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Nzegwu was treasurer for the Black Law Students Association and a member of the National Trial Team. Upon graduation, he was awarded the Elizabeth Maxwell Carroll Chestnut Award for scholarship. Since then, he has become co-chair of the Maryland Carey Law School Club (MCLSC) and a dedicated mentor for current students.
Nzegwu serves on the Board of Directors for the Friends of Patterson Park in Baltimore City and is on the American Bar Association's White Collar & Criminal Litigation Committee.