Dilworth Partner Receives Urban Angel Award

Philadelphia, PA - Dilworth Paxson partner and former Acting Governor and Senate President John O. Bennett III recently was honored as a 2008 Urban Angel Award recipient by the New York Theological Seminary in Manhattan, NY. The event was held at the New York Marriott Marquis where over 600 attendees applauded Senator Bennett's many philanthropic successes while serving in office.

New York Theological Seminary President Dr. Dale Irvin noted Mr. Bennett's continual sponsorship for laws that helped protect human rights and dignity, his promotion of child and family advocacy and his role in creating a Holocaust studies program in New Jersey as well as the creation of the New Jersey Holocaust Center.

Mr. Bennett served as a member of the New Jersey Legislature for more than 24 years. He was first elected to the General Assembly in 1979. In May of 1989, after five terms in the Assembly, he was chosen to fill a vacant seat in the New Jersey Senate and was subsequently re-elected to four more terms. He held the positions of Majority Leader, Senate Co-President and Acting Governor in 2002.

As a legislator, Bennett sponsored numerous initiatives to encourage business development and economic growth, several environmental protection measures, the Bill of Rights for the Developmentally Disabled, and the No Early Release Act.

Mr. Bennett chairs Dilworth Paxson's Government Affairs Group and is a member of its Corporate Department and its Public Finance and Real Estate Groups in the Firm's Neptune Office. He has over 30 years of experience in municipal law and public finance and is a recognized authority in those fields.