Gibbons Chief Diversity Officer Receives NJSBA 2025 Mel Narol Award

This attorney has been selected for the recognitions mentioned herein, which have been conferred by the corresponding publications and/or organizations noted. An overview of the selection methodologies for these recognitions can be found at https://www.gibbonslaw.com/awards. Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

The New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) has bestowed its 2025 Mel Narol Award on Robert L. Johnson, Gibbons P.C.’s Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) and a Director in the firm’s Corporate Group. The award, named for the late NJSBA Officer and Trustee who was known for his collegiality, kindness, and unwavering commitment to diversity as a charter member of the association’s Task Force on Diversity, is given by the NJSBA Diversity Committee and NJSBA Board of Trustees to an individual who has “spearheaded inclusion and made strides for women and minority lawyers.”

Presented with the award on May 15 at the 2025 NJSBA Annual Meeting & Convention in Atlantic City, Mr. Johnson was chosen for his work advocating for reforms in state procurement laws to increase procurement opportunities for women- and minority-owned businesses in the communities local to Gibbons and around the state of New Jersey, and for “providing vital resources and pro bono services to help diverse small-business owners to launch, sustain and advance their endeavors.”

He also was cited for his participation in various NJSBA educational programs and gatherings; his role as a Founding Trustee and board member of the Garden State Bar Foundation, the charitable arm of the Garden State Bar Association that provides scholarships to minority law students; and his establishment of Gibbons’s Clerkship to Associate Pipeline Program, which has helped law students from diverse backgrounds develop skills to succeed in the legal profession and prepare for clerkships and associate positions.

As Gibbons’s CDO, Mr. Johnson leads the Gibbons Diversity Initiative (GDI), developing and supporting various platforms to promote and achieve a broadly inclusive workforce and workplace through ethnic, gender, and other forms of diversity. Admired for his dedication to diversity at Gibbons and beyond, he has strengthened GDI’s effectiveness, reach, and impact on the legal and business communities through both the program’s internal components  – training, mentoring, retention, and innovative programming – and its external components – industrywide thought leadership, engagement with like-minded business associations, community outreach, and supplier diversity.

Mr. Johnson is also a board member and the current Corporate Secretary for the African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey, which is in the top 3 percent of all chambers in the United States that are accredited by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and is the only accredited chamber in New Jersey.

Mr. Johnson has received numerous accolades for his contributions to DEI. These include Profiles in Diversity Journal “Black Leadership” and “Black Leaders Worth Watching” Awards; ROI-NJ honors as an “Influencer: People of Color” and “Influencer: Diversity and Inclusion,” as well as one of “New Jersey’s Most Influential DEI Leaders”; and New Jersey Law Journal recognition on the publication’s 2021 “Diverse Attorneys of the Year” list, among others.