The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law is proud to announce the recipients of the 2026 Alumni Honors to be presented during Alumni Weekend on Thursday, April 16.
Every year, Maryland Carey Law recognizes graduates for their leadership, achievements, and impact on Maryland Carey Law and the legal profession. In 2026, the law school will present the following awards: the Distinguished Graduate Award, the Mary Ellen Barbera ’84 Judicial Excellence Award, the Benjamin L. Cardin ’67 Public Service Award, and the Rising Star Award. Honorees are selected by members of the Alumni Board Awards Committee and confirmed by the Alumni Board.
The Distinguished Graduate Award is presented to a Maryland Carey Law alum who has achieved prominence through professional excellence and service to the community. This year’s recipient is Stanford Gann, Sr. ’55. Gann is a senior partner at Levin Gann PA in Towson, Maryland.
A 1955 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Gann served as a law clerk to the U.S. Attorney George Cochran Doub during law school.
After graduation, he spent two years with the Headquarters of Second Army Judge Advocate before commencing his private practice with Ellis Levin and Calman A. Levin to found Levin & Gann where he has focused mainly on corporate and business matters.
He has extensive experience in limited partnerships, LLCs, taxation, mergers and acquisitions, real estate financing and development, and excels at negotiating work-outs as well as reconstructing debts.
In addition to his primary interests, Gann has led his firm’s litigation committee and, as a subspecialty, developed an expertise in family law.
His clients include manufacturing companies, distributors, IT providers, carriers, real estate developers, automobile dealers, and health care providers.
Gann has been a lecturer for the Maryland Institute for the Continuing Professional Education of Lawyers and as a member of the Maryland State Board of Contract Appeals faculty. He was also a vice chairman of the Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland.
Since 2019, he has been an active member of the Maryland Carey Law Board of Visitors.
The Benjamin L. Cardin ’67 Public Service Award is presented to an alum who has demonstrated significant and substantial contributions to furthering ideals of public service in the law. This year’s honoree is the Hon. Michael Siri ’01. Judge Siri is an associate judge on the District Court of Maryland for Baltimore County.
Judge Siri chairs the Judiciary’s Standing Committee on Pro Bono and the Court Access Committee. For the past two years, he has chaired the Judicial Conference Workgroup and the Mentoring Subcommittee for the Judiciary’s Education Committee. Additionally, he serves on the board of the Y of Central Maryland, the executive committee for the Asian Pacific American Bar Association, and the Board of Governors of the Maryland State Bar Association.
After serving as president of the Baltimore County Bar Association, he now co-chairs the association’s Summer Scholars program.
Prior to his appointment in 2019, he was a partner at Bowie & Jensen, LLC, where he represented small and medium-sized privately held businesses, with a focus on business litigation and construction law.
A 2001 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Judge Siri has stayed deeply engaged with the law school, returning frequently to offer advice and mentorship to students at events like Networking 101 and APALSA’s Spring Reception.
The Mary Ellen Barbera ’84 Judicial Excellence Award is presented to an alum who exemplifies the highest standards of judicial excellence, displays extraordinary courage, energy, and tenacity in the handling of controversial and difficult cases as well as embodies strength of character, service, and competence as a jurist, lawyer, and public servant. This year’s honoree is the Hon. Julie Rubin ’98. Judge Rubin is a district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.
Prior to her 2022 appointment, Judge Rubin was an associate judge of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, 8th Judicial Circuit, and, prior to that, principal and vice president of Astrachan Gunst Thomas Rubin, P.C.
Following her 1998 graduation from Maryland Carey Law, where she has returned as an adjunct professor, Judge Rubin was an Asper Fellow with the Hon. Marvin J. Garbis of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.
She is a member of the American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the Maryland State Bar Association, and the Women's Bar Association of Maryland, for which she served on the Board of Directors.
Judge Rubin has also served on the boards of The Bryn Mawr School, the CollegeBound Foundation, the Baltimore Educational Scholarship Trust, and the Simon E. Sobeloff Law Society.
Judge Rubin is a co-author of the text, Intellectual Property for Maryland Business and Litigation Lawyers, and a contributing author of Finding Justice: A History of Women Lawyers in Maryland.
The Rising Star Award recognizes a recent graduate (must have graduated between 2016 and 2025) whose exemplary contributions of service and leadership, either professionally or at Maryland Carey Law, have brought credit to the graduate and this institution. This year’s honoree is Benjamin Garmoe ’16. Garmoe is the Salsbury Director of Trial Advocacy at Maryland Carey Law, where he directs the award-winning National Trial Team.
Garmoe travels the country with the Trial Team and manages all aspects of the team’s operation. Since he took over as director in 2020, the Trial Team has won 12 championships, advanced to nationals at major tournaments six times, and risen substantially in all three major ranking systems.
Previously, Garmoe worked at Vernon & Fanshaw doing civil defense litigation and began his legal career as a judicial law clerk for the Hon. Edward R. K. Hargadon in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City.
A 2016 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, Garmoe was a captain of the National Trial Team while in law school and won the Morris B. Myerowitz Moot Court Competition. Upon graduation, he was named to the Order of Barristers.
Garmoe also served as the head coach of the UMBC Mock Trial Team, which went from unranked to #1 in the nation under his leadership.