April 24, 2024
Irving M. Blank Receives Tradition of Excellence Award
Richmond lawyer and former Virginia State Bar President Irving M. Blank of Blank & Marcus, LLC has been awarded the General Practice Section’s Tradition of Excellence Award. The award recognizes a Virginia lawyer who “embodies the highest tradition of personal and professional excellence in Virginia, enhances the image and esteem of attorneys in the Commonwealth, and has devoted significant amounts of time, efforts, and/or funds to activities that benefit their community.”
In his nomination, Keith B. Marcus, Blank’s longtime partner in the firm, noted that Blank “has always embodied the highest level of professionalism and enhanced the image of lawyers throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia.” A Virginia lawyer for 57 years, Blank served for decades on the board of directors for Central Virginia Legal Aid and the Legal Aid Justice Center, as well as leadership roles in numerous public and civic associations while balancing a litigation career that includes numerous cases resulting in million dollar plus verdicts and settlements.
At the Virginia State Bar, Blank devoted extensive time to bettering the profession by volunteering as an ABA Delegate, serving on the Professionalism Course faculty, and working on the Judicial Candidate and Evaluation Committee. He was also President of the Virginia Law Foundation. Blank has been extremely active in the Jewish community, serving on the board of the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond, the Virginia Holocaust Museum, and Jewish Family Services, as well as several national boards. He was also chairman of the Jewish Community Relations Committee of the Richmond Jewish Federation for 15 years.
He was named Leader of the Year for Virginia Lawyers in 2011 and inducted into the Virginia Lawyers Hall of Fame in 2018. In 2020, the Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys presented him with the Civility and Professionalism Award. And in 2021, he received the Humanitarian Award from the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities. He is a Fellow of both the American College of Trial Lawyers and the Virginia Law Foundation.
A graduate of Virginia Tech, Blank received his law degree from the University of Richmond Law School. Blank has been married to Rhona Mandel Blank for 58 years and they have two children, Lisa Looney; and Jonathan Blank, who is a partner at McGuireWoods, LLC. He and Rhona are blessed with 6 grandchildren. Blank will receive his award on Friday, May 31, at the Annual Meeting in Virginia Beach.