This past Saturday night Rob Steinbaum, publisher extraordinaire of The New Jersey Law Journal since 1987, was honored by the New Jersey Ballet for his contributions to Newark and the Arts.  The honor was bestowed as the ballet company celebrated its 51st year at a gala performance and black tie dinner attended by many of Rob's friends and colleagues.  Among those was Rob's long-time friend Justice Samuel Alito of the US Supreme Court, pictured with Rob below, who returned to Newark specifically to be a part of the celebration.

As many of us know, Rob is the creator and producer of the Celebration of Lawyers in the Arts, which has become a biannual event at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center since 2003 when its launch coincided with the NJ Law Journal's 125th Anniversary.  Rob used the original celebration as the launch pad for co-founding the New Jersey Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, Inc. which matches pro bono attorneys with artists and arts organization in need of legal assistance.

Rob is also a prime booster for the city of Newark, where he has led tours, organized civic leadership groups, and supported all manner of good works designed to promote that city.

 We talk alot about having our newspapers--and our publishers--become part of the communities we serve.  No one exempllifies the ideal of an active, involved publisher better than Rob.  It was an honor to see him feted by the New Jersey arts and legal communities this past Saturday night, a real measure of Rob's success as both our publisher and as a socially-involved individual.