Claudia Barber is the recipient of the 2024 Lawyer of Distinction Award. She brought awareness to the composition of the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County in 2016. In November 2016, the Anne Arundel County NAACP recognized her efforts to challenge the composition of the Anne Arundel County Circuit Court with the President’s Award. Her efforts proved fruitful. In 2017, protests and demonstrations occurred in front of 8 Church Circle in Annapolis, Maryland. By 2018, the composition of the circuit court changed, which was more than 368 years overdue. She was elected second vice president of the Anne Arundel County NAACP in 2019 and first vice president of the Anne Arundel County NAACP chapter in 2020. She chaired the Legal Redress Committee, and served as editor in chief of the Anne Arundel County NAACP branch newsletter. The newsletter won a national award, the Thalheimier’s Award from the National NAACP. She is also the recipient of the 2022 Dr. Martin Luther King Drum Major for Justice Award and a proud recipient of the Sojourner Truth Award from Anne Arundel County in 2022.She is a lifetime member of the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) where she served 2011-2013 as District 4 Director. She is also a lifetime member of the National Bar Association.Claudia Barber has been a member of the Maryland bar for 35 years, and a member of the DC bar since 1994. She has practiced law for more than 22 years, and began serving as an Administrative Law Judge with the District of Columbia Office of Administrative Hearings in August 2005 until August 2016.Claudia Barber is an ordained Elder with the United Church of Jesus Christ, Apostolic.Read more about this authorRead less about this author