Michele L. Babcock is the Managing Partner of Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP.
Michele joined the law firm of Jacobowitz and Gubits, 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 and in litigation.
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.
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. Michele has served on the Board of Trustees for the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum since 2015 and currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Board.
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.
Honors and Awards
Athena Award -Achieved the highest level of professional excellence, contributes time and energy to improve the life of others within the community, actively assists others, particularly women, in realizing their full leadership potential.
• Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties, Distinguished Member Attorney, 2019
• Hofstra University, Outstanding Women in Law, 2019
• Leadership Orange Hall of Fame, 2018
• Sullivan County Professional Women in Business, 2017
• Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties, Outstanding Young Lawyer Award, 2009
• 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
Professional Associations and Memberships
• New York State Bar Association, Municipal Law Section
• Orange County Bar Association
• Women’s Bar Association of Orange and Sullivan Counties
