NEW YORK, June 5—The Grunin Center at NYU School of Law yesterday announced the recipient of this year’s Grunin Prize for Law and Social Entrepreneurship. The prize is awarded annually to lawyers working to further the goals of sustainability and human development, and rewards innovative projects and solutions developed by lawyers to advance the fields of social entrepreneurship, impact investing, and sustainable development.
The 2024 Grunin Prize was awarded to Calvert Impact Capital and Morgan Lewis for Cut Carbon Notes, which are a secured, investment-grade rated, fixed-income product that finances sustainability upgrades for commercial buildings, with the objective of reducing carbon emissions.
Two legal teams were nominated – Charles A. Sweet and Jeremiah C. Parker, partner and of counsel, respectively, at Morgan Lewis, and Calvert Impact’s in-house legal department, particularly Emmeline Liu and associate general counsel Alyse Young.
The following additional lawyers also supported this project: Joe Meginnes, Director of Strategy, New Product Legal and Operations, at Calvert Impact. Deborah A. Stern, Structured Transactions Associate at Morgan Lewis, Fiona E. Murphy, Structured Transactions Associate at Morgan Lewis, Sarah A. Nelson, Partner at Morgan Lewis, Ester Lee, Tax Associate at Morgan Lewis, Tomer J. Inbar, Tax Partner at Morgan Lewis, Chelsea R. Rubin, Tax Associate at Morgan Lewis, Kevin J. Biron, Litigation Partner at Morgan Lewis.
“The Calvert and Morgan Lewis teams are incredibly proud to have received this honor. Just to have been considered among this accomplished field of finalists doing such important and impactful work in alignment with the Grunin Center’s mission is both gratifying and humbling.”
Also announced yesterday was the Grunin Prize for Sustained Commitment, which was awarded to Mary Rose Brusewitz who is the Member in Charge of Clark Hill PLC’s New York office where she concentrates her practice on international transactions involving Latin America, Africa, Asia, India, Europe and the United States. Ms. Brusewitz is a founding member of the Impact Investing Legal Working Group (IILWG) and has provided ongoing leadership to the IILWG over the past decade. With this award, we are celebrating Ms. Brusewitz’s impressive legal career that, among other things, has shaped the fields of impact investing, sustainability, and development finance across the world. We also are celebrating her commitment to our growing legal community of practice. This includes her substantial pro bono contributions as a supervising attorney at the International Transactions Clinic both at NYU School of Law and the University of Michigan Law School where she has spent over a decade mentoring the next generation of lawyers as they prepare to start their transactional legal practices and to “do good by doing deals.”
"I am deeply humbled and honored to receive this recognition from the Grunin Center,” said Mary Rose Brusewitz. “It has been a fascinating and rewarding journey working over many years to support so many colleagues, students, and clients in growing a global community of impact investing professionals, investees, and social entrepreneurs."
The Grunin Center for Law and Social Entrepreneurship is the first law school-based center dedicated to enhancing the community of lawyers and legal institutions engaged in social entrepreneurship, impact investing, and sustainable development. It was established in 2017 with a generous endowment from NYU Law graduates Jay Grunin ’67 and Linda Kalmanowitz Grunin ’67, along with the Grunin Foundation.
“Serving as a judge for the Grunin Prize competition has always been a challenging task,” said Jay Grunin, co-founder and chairman of the Grunin Foundation. “The lawyers who propel these projects forward are truly creative and impressive. I’m delighted to celebrate their work through this competition and shed light on the vital role that lawyers play in devising innovative solutions that advance the fields of social entrepreneurship, impact investing, and sustainable development. Furthermore, I’m pleased to announce that for the second year running, we’re awarding the Grunin Prize for Sustained Commitment, recognizing extraordinary individuals like Mary Rose who have made a significant impact in these fields throughout their careers.”
Deborah Burand, professor of clinical law and faculty director of the Grunin Center at NYU Law, said, “With these two Grunin Prize awards, our exceptional group of Grunin Prize finalists, and the many projects profiled in this year’s “Hall of Impact,” we’re also celebrating the evolution of our growing and maturing legal community of practice as lawyers around the world advance the fields of social entrepreneurship, impact investing, and sustainable development. The legal creativity and expertise that Calvert Impact Capital, Morgan Lewis and Mary Rose have contributed to these fields inspires us and reminds us of the important roles lawyers can play in shaping these fields for years to come.”
Media Contacts
Michael Orey
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