2025 Distinguished Achievement Awards Dinner
October 23, 2025
The UNM School of Law and the Board of the UNM School of Law Alumni Association hosted the annual Distinguished Achievement Awards Dinner on October 17, 2025. The 2025 Distinguished Achievement Awards were presented to Paul Biderman, The Honorable M. Monica Zamora, and Peter Cubra. The Alumni Promise Award was presented to Lauren E. Riley.
This annual tradition was established in 1993, when the School of Law Alumni Board members began honoring people who have served the legal community in a significant way at an annual dinner and awards ceremony. The event is dedicated to recognizing outstanding accomplishments and service to the School of Law, the legal profession in New Mexico, and the broader community both within and beyond the state. Since its inception, the Distinguished Achievement Awards Dinner has celebrated more than 70 honorees and welcomed over 7,000 attendees, with the support of hundreds of sponsors. Together, these efforts have raised more than $500,000 to fund important initiatives, including full-tuition Alumni Association scholarships and additional awards for incoming law students.
Class of 2028 Alumni Association Scholarship awardee Lucas Heimgartner shared, “I am grateful to the UNM School of Law Alumni Association for receiving this scholarship. Receiving the Alumni scholarship has done more for me than just allow me to attend law school in my home state. I feel validated in my professional aspirations because of this scholarship and the generosity it represents. I feel that I belong in this school and in my new legal and scholarly community. I can dedicate myself to the study and eventual practice of law wholeheartedly because of the support of this scholarship. I will earnestly strive to live up to the faith signified in me by this award. Thank you.”
The School of Law and the Alumni Association would like to express heartfelt congratulations to all honorees and thank the event sponsors and guests.
Photos from the 2025 event can be accessed here.
Reminder - nominations are now open for the 2026 awards.
