Patrick Dunican joined a select list of luminaries whose portraits hang in dedicated conference rooms at Gibbons P.C. when the firm unveiled his portrait Thursday in what will now be known as the Patrick C. Dunican Jr. Executive Boardroom.
And the firm did it on Dunican’s favorite day of the year, St. Patrick’s Day.
Peter Torcicollo, who succeeded Dunican as the managing director of Gibbons earlier this year, said the honor was well-deserved.
“When you have the opportunity to recognize the monumental influence of someone like Patrick, who has been a pillar of strength to this firm, you seize the moment,” he said.
“There really is no more fitting tribute than to dedicate the firm’s executive boardroom to Patrick. Until this past month, there had never been a meeting in that room that he didn’t preside over. I’m delighted to be a part of this recognition of his years of extraordinary leadership.”
Dunican, who remains active as the executive chairperson at the firm, served as chairman and managing director for 18 years.
The oil portrait will hang in a dedicated conference room in the Gibbons Conference Center, located on the 21st floor of the firm’s Newark headquarters. It will join portraits of other greats at Gibbons in its nearly 100-year history: the firm’s standard bearer, John Gibbons; departed name partners, John Dolan and Frank Vecchione; retired name partner, Ralph Del Deo; and current partners, Michael Griffinger and Peter Carton.
He certainly is worthy of the honor.
Dunican is a nationally recognized law firm leader who was elected managing director of Gibbons in 2004, at the age of 36, and was highlighted by Law360 during his tenure as one of the nation’s most innovative managing partners.
Dunican has been instrumental in building Gibbons into one of the region’s most prominent and successful law firms, with eight offices across New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington, D.C., and Florida.
Numerous other accomplishments under his direction include that the firm:
- Expanded its geographic footprint down the East Coast;
- Established itself as the premier government affairs firm in New Jersey;
- Maintained its status among the finest litigation firms in the U.S.;
- Grew its corporate practice to make Gibbons a “go to” firm in New Jersey for complex corporate transactions.
The firm also became a unique player in the higher education space and established the Gibbons Institute of Law, Science & Technology at Seton Hall Law School. Throughout, Dunican ensured that Gibbons expanded its community presence and remained a first-class corporate citizen, while making diversity, equity and inclusion a real and tangible pillar of the firm’s mission.
Dunican is a regular on all power lists in the state, including ROI-NJ’s, but he may be most proud of receiving the 2019 Tip O’Neill Award from the Donegal County (Ireland) Council, presented annually to people of Irish background in recognition of achievements in their chosen fields and their interest in and support for Ireland and its diaspora.
In addition to his firm management roles and legal practice, Dunican is the chairman of the board of trustees of Iona College and former chairman of the Seton Hall University School of Law board of visitors.
