Annual Diocesan Red Mass

MADISON  Karol Corbin Walker, an attorney who has chalked up numerous firsts in her distinguished law career, added yet another distinction Oct. 6 as the first woman to receive the Advocati Christi Award at the fourth­ annual Red Mass for the legal profession. Bishop Serratelli presided over the well-attended liturgy held at St. Paul Inside the Walls: the Diocesan Center for Evangelization at Bayley-Ellard here, and presented Walker with the award — a portrait of St. Thomas More — not only for her commitment to the legal profession, but also to her faith.

Judges, lawyers, other legal personnel, family and friends gathered for the 11 a.m. Mass in St. Paul’s auditorium to honor Walker, a partner in Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck, LLP in Hacken­sack and a parishioner of Assumption Parish in Morristown, and also to pray that God confers the Holy Spirit upon members of the legal profession. The Mass was concelebrated by several diocesan priests and was followed by a reception at St. Paul’s. Coordinating the event were members of St. Paul’s and Advocati Christi, a fellowship of Catholic lawyers and judges, who are committed to their faith and profession and to mentoring other legal professionals.

“This has been an emotional day. Thank you for this incredible award,” Walker said. She also thanked God; her friends, colleagues and mentors; Bishop Serratelli and people at St. Paul’s and Assumption, especially, Msgr. John Hart, its pastor and diocesan director of Clergy Personnel; and her family, especially her husband of 34 years, Paul. “It’s nice to receive awards but it’s special to receive an award because you fulfill your faith in God and do what you’re raised to do, which is to make sure that your faith and your profession are always connected. My prayer is for each of us to keep God first in our lives,” she said.

A litigator with trial experience in the State and Federal Courts, Walker has built an impressive legal career marked by many “firsts.” In 1995, she became the first African-American woman to attain partner status at any major New Jersey law firm. In 2003, Walker became the first African-American president of the N.J. State Bar Association. In 2012, she became the first African-American female president of the National Conference of Bar Presidents. In 2015, Walker became the first attorney in the state appointed chair of the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, after having served as the Third Circuit representative to this committee since 2013 — the first attorney of color in New Jersey to serve in that capacity, according to her resume.

A 1986 graduate of Seton Hall Law School, Walker has argued numerous cases before the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey, the N.J. Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She focuses her practice on business, commercial, employment, toxic tort and product liability litigation matters. Her clients have included many Fortune 500 corporations as well as other publicly and privately held corporations, financial institutions, entertainers and insurance companies. Walker often makes the lists of “top lawyers,” according to her resume.

As in her profession, Walker has distinguished herself in her faith life. At Assump­tion, she started volunteering with its Rite of Christian Initiation program in 1994. Ten years later, she and Paul became the ministry’s directors. At the parish, Walker also has served as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. She also reports being spiritually transformed during the 10 consecutive pilgrimages that she has made to Lourdes since 2010. Walker spoke about her faith and career in 2014 at St. Paul’s, as part of its “Speaking of Faith” series.

In 2005, Walker was inducted as a Dame of Malta into the Sovereign Military Order of Malta because of the sponsorship of the late N.J. Supreme Court Justice Marie Garibaldi. Its lay members seek to achieve spiritual perfection, defend the Catholic Church and take an oath to spend their energies serving the sick and poor. Walker served on the Order of Malta American Association Board of Councillors and was elected secretary in 2016. She became the Order of Malta New Jersey Area co-chair in 2019, she said.

In introducing Walker, Andrew Anselmi, partner in McCusker, Anselmi, Rosen & Carvelli in Florham Park; founding member of Advocati Christi; and the first recipient of the Advocati Christi award, called himself a “long-time admirer” of this year’s honoree and her “fantastic professional journey.”

“Karol has had many ‘firsts’ in her career. First acts are usually forgotten or taken for granted, because so many have followed in those pioneering footsteps. They all make us dare ourselves to reach for greater heights,” said Anselmi, who noted that her “journey has been guided by her faith” and she has even inspired Msgr. Hart, who called her “all heart.” “Karol, you are what we all strive to be with the example that you have set with your husband and best friend, Paul. May your faith-filled zeal guide us as we enter another judicial term,” he said.

Before Bishop Serratelli presented Walker with the award, Father Paul Manning, St. Paul’s executive director, diocesan vicar for evangelization and homilist of the Mass, said that the center was honored to host the Red Mass at 11 a.m., the usual time for its Young Adult Mass. In fact, many of St. Paul’s Young Adults participated in the liturgy, including providing music.

“I am grateful for knowing Karol, someone who integrates the practice of faith with the practice of the law,” Father Manning said.

At the end of the Red Mass, Bishop Serratelli congratulated Walker and thanked members of the legal profession for their attendance.

“You have a very noble profession. A society cannot exist without justice. The foundation of the state of society is justice and law, which flow from God. Many thanks for your presence today, which is recognition of that. I’m sure that God will guide you with the gift of the Holy Spirit. I pray that he will give you not only the wisdom to know what is right, but also the courage to implement it,” he said.