Thomas R. Curtin, Esquire, to Receive the 2026 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Third Circuit

ALEXANDRIA, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Thomas R. Curtin has been selected to receive the prestigious 2026 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Third Circuit. Curtin is a partner at McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP in Morristown, New Jersey, and a member of the firm’s commercial litigation group. He will receive the award at a special awards ceremony in Hershey, Pennsylvania, in May.

Thomas R. Curtin, Esquire, selected to receive prestigious 2026 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the 3rd Circuit.

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“He is a ‘dean’ of the bar, earning that reputation over an illustrious 57-year career as an attorney,” writes Chief Judge Michael Chargares of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, who nominated Curtin for the award. “Tom is a highly skilled litigator and trial attorney who exemplifies all that is right about attorneys.”

Curtin joined McElroy Deutsch in 2018 where he practices civil and commercial litigation and mediation in the New Jersey federal and state courts. Before joining the firm, Curtin had a long tenure at Graham Curtin PA, which he helped found in 1987.

Over the years, Curtin has served the legal profession more broadly. A life fellow of the American Bar Foundation, he has served as a member of the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates, for example. He was also governor for New Jersey and Pennsylvania in the American Bar Association’s Board of Governors. Since 2009, he has chaired the Lawyers Advisory Committee of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. He is also a founding member of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals Bar Association.

At the state level, Curtin has served as president of the New Jersey State Bar Association and the New Jersey State Bar Foundation. To help institutionalize high standards for lawyers, he also chaired the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law. When he saw that lawyers needed help with emotional and substance use issues, he helped found the New Jersey Lawyers Assistance Program. He was president of the Morris County Bar Association.

In addition, Curtin is a member of the New Jersey Supreme Court Historical Advisory Board and the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey Historical Society.

Curtin also gives back to his community, serving as a volunteer with the Community Food Bank of New Jersey and a board member and past president of Autism New Jersey.

Curtin earned his undergraduate degree from Fairfield University in 1965 and his law degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School in 1968.

The American Inns of Court, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, inspires the legal community to advance the rule of law by achieving the highest level of professionalism through example, education, and mentoring. The organization’s membership includes nearly 30,000 federal, state, and local judges; lawyers; law professors; and law students in 350 chapters nationwide. More information is available at www.innsofcourt.org.