The Legal Times published a tribute in June of 2009 to lawyers who died in the preceding year and had made an outstanding contribution to the Washington legal community. One of those lawyers was Barbara McDowell. The Legal Times’ tribute said as follows:
After arguing 18 cases at the Supreme Court for the U.S. solicitor general, Barbara McDowell could have had her pick of law firms. But she decided to use her litigating skills to help the poor, by launching lawsuits with impact beyond individual clients. McDowell, director of appellate advocacy at the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia, died on Jan. 3 at age 56. But her legal vision will live on at Drinker Biddle & Reath, where her husband, Jerry Hartman, is a partner. He'll head a pro bono initiative in her name. "She really was the voice of the downtrodden in the appellate area in the D.C. Court of Appeals," said Hartman. — Tony Mauro