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Key Facts
- Federal level: The ABA’s Spirit of Excellence Awards are described as recognizing lawyers who promote a more racially and ethnically diverse legal profession.
- Federal level: The ABA’s Spirit of Excellence Awards program lists Mary L. Smith under “Previous Spirit of Excellence Award Recipients” labeled “2017 Honorees”.
- National overview: NNABA’s Mary Smith profile identifies Mary L. Smith as an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation.
- National overview: NNABA’s Mary Smith profile states she received the Spirit of Excellence award from the American Bar Association, with NNABA labeling the timing as 2012.
- National overview: NNABA’s Past Presidents list shows Mary Smith served as NNABA president for 2013–2015.
- National overview: NNABA’s 2020–2021 annual report agenda includes remarks by “Former NNABA President – Mary L. Smith” and frames her recognition connection in diversity and inclusion terms.
- Federal level: The ABA 2018 program document uses the “2017 Honorees” label for Mary L. Smith in the award-recipient list.
- National overview: When you compare ABA program labeling with NNABA biography labeling, the records consistently connect Mary L. Smith to the Spirit of Excellence Awards even though the award-year wording differs by document type.
What this archive recovery is and what it is not
This archive recovery provides legal information drawn from older, official ABA and NNABA materials. It explains a reader-facing issue that often appears in historical records—when different documents describe the same recognition but use different year wording.
- What this archive recovery is and what it is not
- What the ABA Spirit of Excellence Awards are described to recognize
- How NNABA’s Mary Smith biography identifies Mary L. Smith
- NNABA leadership context the Past Presidents list
- NNABA annual report agenda connecting recognition to diversity themes
- Why different documents may label different “award years”
- How to read these records as historical documentation
- Keeping Federal and State legal scope in perspective
- Related legal information
- Sources
It is not a statement of current law or a current legal requirement; it is a historical documentation and interpretation guide.
What the ABA Spirit of Excellence Awards are described to recognize
In ABA program materials, the Spirit of Excellence Awards are described as recognizing lawyers whose work promotes a more racially and ethnically diverse legal profession. One example is the ABA program PDF that includes the Spirit of Excellence awards and recipient listings; see the ABA Spirit of Excellence Awards (2018 program PDF).
How NNABA’s Mary Smith biography identifies Mary L. Smith
NNABA’s official “Mary Smith” leadership page identifies Mary L. Smith as an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. That same page also describes her connection to the Spirit of Excellence award, including NNABA’s own timing label for that recognition; see Mary Smith – National Native American Bar Association.
NNABA leadership context the Past Presidents list
An NNABA “Past Presidents” listing provides additional organizational context showing the leadership years NNABA associated with Mary Smith within the NNABA timeline; see Past Presidents – National Native American Bar Association.
NNABA annual report agenda connecting recognition to diversity themes
NNABA’s 2020–2021 annual-report document includes agenda text for remarks by “Former NNABA President – Mary L. Smith.” The surrounding speaker framing connects her background to diversity and inclusion themes in the context of her professional-history recognition; see 2020-2021 Annual Report – National Native American Bar Association (PDF).
Why different documents may label different “award years”
When readers encounter conflicting year labels in archives, the archive recovery approach is to separate (1) what the program recognition is, from (2) the specific year wording that each document chooses to attach to that recognition.
In this record set, two official document types use different year labels for Mary L. Smith’s Spirit of Excellence connection:
| Document type | What the document labels in connection with Mary L. Smith | How to read the label in an archive recovery |
|---|---|---|
| NNABA biography | NNABA’s page labels the timing for her Spirit of Excellence recognition as 2012 | Treat “2012” as NNABA’s biography timing label |
| ABA program publication | The ABA program PDF lists her in “Previous Spirit of Excellence Award Recipients” under “2017 Honorees” | Treat “2017 Honorees” as the ABA program recipient-listing label |
Both document types remain consistent on the underlying point that Mary L. Smith is associated with the Spirit of Excellence recognition; the disagreement is about the year wording used inside each document format.
How to read these records as historical documentation
For readers, the value of this archive recovery comes from triangulating the same broad theme across official Sources: (1) the ABA materials explain the Spirit of Excellence awards’ diversity-in-law purpose, and (2) NNABA materials provide identity and organizational-history context while also stating a Spirit of Excellence connection.
The year wording differences are best handled as archive-label differences—each organization’s official document attaches its own year label for the recognition in its own way.
Keeping Federal and State legal scope in perspective
Nothing in these ABA and NNABA documents is presented as a Federal or State legal rule. The materials are professional-history and organizational award documentation. The “controlling” takeaway for readers is therefore the document type itself (award program language versus biography and leadership listings), not a legal requirement or enforcement mechanism.
