The Michigan State Bar Foundation is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Foundation Awards. Each year, the Foundation presents the Founders Award and the Access to Justice Award to honor the outstanding contributions of individuals whose work strengthens our legal system and promotes access to justice for all.
Justice Marilyn Kelly will receive the Founders Award. The award recognizes a lawyer who exemplifies professional excellence and outstanding community contributions. Ashley Lowe will receive the Access to Justice Award, which honors a person who has significantly advanced access to justice for low-income families in Michigan.
“It is a great privilege for the Foundation to acknowledge the remarkable contributions of this year’s Foundation Award recipients,” said Craig Lubben, President of the Michigan State Bar Foundation. “Their work reflects the highest ideals of the legal profession and contributes to achieving the goal of access to justice for all.”
FOUNDERS AWARD
Justice Marilyn Kelly is the distinguished jurist in residence at the Wayne State University Law School, where she teaches a seminar focused on access to justice. Justice Kelly’s illustrious legal career boasts of many accomplishments, including her 16-year tenure as chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. As chief justice, she created and led the Solutions on Self-Help Task Force that resulted in the creation of Michigan Legal Help. Michigan Legal Help is a nationally recognized online legal self-help platform that provides free resources and tools to help individuals understand and manage legal problems. She is an elected member and past chair of the Wayne State University Board of Governors. Her notable public service includes elections to the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan State Board of Education, where she served as chair. Justice Kelly practiced law for 17 years and has been an active member of the State Bar of Michigan, where she served on the Representative Assembly and was a member of the Council of the Family Law Section. Justice Marilyn Kelly is a Fellow of the Michigan State Bar Foundation.
ACCESS TO JUSTICE AWARD
Ashley Lowe is the chief executive officer of Lakeshore Legal Aid in the Detroit metro region. She has dedicated her career to advocating for vulnerable populations who face barriers to accessing the justice system. Prior to joining Lakeshore, Lowe was the associate director of clinical education at Wayne State University Law School and a professor at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, where she founded and directed the Family Law Assistance Project. She began her career in Michigan at Dickinson Wright. She is an active member of the State Bar of Michigan, where she chairs the Justice Initiatives Committee and was recently elected to the Board of Commissioners. She also co-chairs the State Planning Body and is a member of the Justice for All Commission. A critical voice for access to justice, Lowe trains attorneys and speaks frequently about trauma-informed legal practice and the right to counsel in eviction cases. Lowe is a Fellow of the Michigan State Bar Foundation.
The Michigan State Bar Foundation, established in 1947, provides leadership and grants to improve the administration of justice and increase access to justice for all in the civil legal system.