Michele L. Babcock

MANAGING PARTNER

Michele L. Babcock is the Managing Partner of J&G Law, LLP.

Michele joined the law firm of J&G Law, LLP in 2003 and became partner in 2011. She has served as the Managing Partner since 2015.  Michele primarily practices Municipal, Land Use and Environmental Law and has represented local governments and private applicants in zoning, land use and environmental permitting.

Michele was admitted to the New York State Bar in March 2004 and is a member of the New York State Bar Association and the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and a concentration in Law and Justice from SUNY Cortland in 2000 and a Juris Doctor degree from Hofstra University School of Law in 2003. While attending law school, she studied at the Faculte de Droit de I’Universite de Nice with the Hon. Ruth Bader Ginsburg.  She is admitted to practice in the Southern and Northern Districts of the State of New York and to the Supreme Court of the United States.

Michele is currently serving as a member of the Access: Supports for Living Foundation Board, Orange County Chamber of Commerce Women MEAN Business Committee, Board of Trustees for the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum and as a member of the Business Advisory Council to the Mount Saint Mary College School of Business.

Michele has participated in the Pattern for Progress Fellows Program (Class of 2011), Leadership Orange (Class of 2011), and Leadership Sullivan (Class of 2018) where she served as Vice President.  She also previously served on the Board of Trustees for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh and as the Vice President to the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties and delegate to the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York. She also served as a Board Member of the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce and the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

Michele received the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award by the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties and the Orange County Rising Star Award in 2009.  She was recognized as one of Sullivan County’s Business and Professional Women of the Year in 2017 and was inducted into the Leadership Orange Hall of Fame in 2018.  In 2019, Michele received the Distinguished Attorney Award from the Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties and was recognized as an Outstanding Women in Law by Hofstra University which recognizes and celebrates women who have made meaningful and inspiring contributions to the legal community.  In 2020, Michele received the Women In Business award from Hudson Valley Magazine for being one of the most influential executive women in the Hudson Valley and was recognized as a New York Woman Leader in the Law by the New York Law Journal.  In 2021, Michele was recognized by Hudson Valley Magazine as a top lawyer in the Hudson Valley and received the ATHENA Leadership Award from the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce.  In 2023, Michele was recognized as a Top-Rated Woman Leader in Law by Martindale-Hubbell.

BAR ADMISSIONS

• U.S. Supreme Court, 2010
• U.S. District Court Northern District of New York, 2005
• U.S. District Court Southern District of New York, 2004
• New York, 2004

EDUCATION

• Hofstra University School of Law, Hempstead, New York
  • J.D. – 2003
• State University at Cortland, Cortland, New York
  • B.A. – 2000
  • Major: Political Science Concentration in Law and Justice

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND MEMBERSHIPS

• New York State Bar Association, Local & State Government Law Section
• New York State Bar Association, Women in Law Section
• Orange County Bar Association
• Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties
• Association of Fundraising Professionals, Mid-Hudson Valley Chapter

HONORS AND AWARDS

• Women Leaders in Law by Martindale-Hubbell, 2023
• ATHENA Leadership Award from the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce, 2021
• Hudson Valley Magazine Top Lawyer in the Hudson Valley, 2021-2022
• Hudson Valley Magazine Women in Business Award, 2020
• Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan, Distinguished Member Attorney Award, April 2019
• Hofstra University Outstanding Women in Law Award, April 2019
• Leadership Orange Hall of Fame, 2018
• Sullivan County Professional Women in Business, 2017
• Women’s Bar Association of Orange & Sullivan County 2009 Outstanding Young Lawyer Award
• Orange County Rising Star Award Recipient, 2009

PROGRAMS

• Leadership Sullivan Graduate, 2018
• Pattern for Progress Fellows Program Graduate, 2011
• Leadership Orange Class of 2011 Graduate