1980-1981

Diane S. Wilner received her B.S. and M.A. from the City College of New York, and she graduated magna cum laude from Brooklyn Law School, where she was a Law Review editor. After being an associate of Skadden Arps, she and three colleagues formed its first spin-off. Later, she founded Wilner & Associates, P.C., which represented Fortune 500 corporations and institutions in diverse areas, including employment, products liability, insurance, and commercial litigation. Ms. Wilner is known for litigating complex cases at the cutting edge, including successfully trying the first case of a physician with AIDS, and handling major appeals. She has published and lectured widely. As NYWBA President and one of the first “Chapter Presidents” of WBASNY, she continued the smooth transition with then newly founded WBASNY and furthered NYWBA’s tireless efforts to open doors for women attorneys. She served as a trail blazer and role model for women litigators by showing that women can “first chair” large cases in federal and state courts, and by helping women to succeed in the law and other professions.