Deborah R. Witkin will receive the Charles J. Parker Legal Services award at the CBA’s annual awards ceremony, Celebrate with the Stars, on Thursday, March 12.
Attorney Witkin is the former Executive Director of Connecticut Legal Services (CLS). She retired in January 2026 after 39 years of distinguished service dedicated to expanding access to justice for low-income individuals and families.
She graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 1986 and joined CLS as a staff attorney the same year, beginning a career defined by advocacy on behalf of vulnerable clients and communities. During her tenure, she practiced and litigated across numerous CLS practice units, building a deep understanding of the complex barriers facing low-income residents.
After holding several leadership roles within the organization, including deputy director, regional director, managing attorney, and director of development, Attorney Witkin became the first female executive director of CLS in 2017. In each role, she helped strengthen the organization’s statewide impact and expand its capacity to deliver high-quality civil legal assistance.
Beyond her work at CLS, she has devoted much of her career to elevating legal education and training in the field of poverty law. As an adjunct faculty member at the University of Connecticut School of Law, she co-developed and supervised a Poverty Law Externship Clinic. She later created the Health Law Clinic at Quinnipiac University School of Law, where she served as visiting clinical professor and director from 1995–1998. Since 2013, she has been a faculty member for the Sergeant Shriver National Center on Poverty Law negotiation training seminars.
Attorney Witkin has also contributed extensive board and community service over the years. She has served on the boards of the Connecticut Council for Non-Adversarial Divorce, the Connecticut Legal Rights Project, and Cold Spring School. She has held several leadership roles at the JCC of Greater New Haven, including having serves as the organization’s board president.
Attorney Witkin remains active in numerous legal and community networks. She is a long-standing member of the Connecticut Bar Association, a James W. Cooper Fellow of the Connecticut Bar Foundation, and a member of the Advisory Council for the Office of Victim Services. She is also a frequent presenter for Management Information Exchange (MIE), a national training and resource organization for legal services programs.
The Charles J. Parker Legal Services Award is presented to a member of the Connecticut Bar who has a deep and abiding interest in and dedication to the delivery of legal services to the disadvantaged in Connecticut.
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