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Donna J. Bays, ’84, was presented with the Indiana State Bar Association’s Gale Phelps Award in recognition of her contributions to professionalism in the area of family law. She received the award on October 7 during the association’s annual meeting.

In the photo, Bays, right, is shown with ISBA immediate past president Jeff Hawkins.

Bays is the founder of Bays Family Law in Zionsville and is a Certified Family Law Specialist, approved by the Indiana Family Law Certification Board. She is a trained collaborative divorce professional, registered domestic relations mediator, parenting coordinator, and guardian ad litem. Bays received a bachelor of science degree, magna cum laude, from Ball State University in 1979 and a juris doctorate, summa cum laude, from IU McKinney in 1984. She is a past chair of the association’s Family & Juvenile Law Section and she served as the 2011-12 chair of the ISBA Solo & Small Firm Conference Planning Committee. She is also a member of the ISBA Legal Ethics and Casemaker Improvement committees. Bays and her four-footed companion, Mordecai, serve as a volunteer therapy dog team Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program.