News Post

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, Jan. 3, 2022

MONTGOMERY – The Alabama State Bar (ASB) has selected Karen Laneaux to serve as its next admissions director. In this role, Karen will oversee the administration of the Alabama bar examination, coordinate the Committee on Character and Fitness, serve as the liaison to the ASB Board of Bar Examiners, and enforce the Rules Governing Admission to the ASB.

“Upholding the standards of the legal profession and improving the administration of justice are the highest priorities of the state bar, and it all starts with the admissions process,” said ASB President Taze Shepard. “Karen’s experience and professionalism will help us ensure the integrity of the process for those who are admitted to the bar.”

A leader in the Bar, Karen is a former chair of the Women’s Section in addition to serving on numerous other ASB committees and task forces. For the past fifteen years, Karen has been a member of the Alabama State Bar Board of Examiners. In 2016, the Alabama State Bar Board of Bar Commissioners elected her to an at-large seat on the Board of Bar Commissioners. She is also a former member of the Hugh Maddox Inns of Court and is a 2019 recipient of the Alabama State Bar President’s Award. Locally, Karen served terms as president of both the Alabama Lawyers Association and the Capital City Bar Association. She is also a long-standing member of the Montgomery County Bar Grievance Committee

“I am humbled to be selected as Admissions Director for the Alabama State Bar,” said Karen. “It is a privilege to have practiced as an Alabama lawyer for more than 25 years, and I am excited for the opportunity to serve current and future members of the Bar.”

A 1992 graduate of University of Alabama at Birmingham, Karen received her Juris Doctorate in 1997 from Tulane University School of Law. She started her career as an associate at Beers, Anderson in Montgomery before going to work for Beasley Allen for four years. For the past 18 years, she’s been in private practice with friend and mentor Sandra Holston Lewis.

Karen is currently an Alabama Law Foundation board member and Fellow. She previously served on the Montgomery County Bar Foundation’s Board and is currently a board member for Brantwood Children’s Home. She has served as guardian ad litem for more than sixteen years, a mentor to young girls and women in her church and the community and taught legal research and writing to law school students. She is a graduate of Leadership Montgomery Class XXXII and a member of the Junior League of Montgomery. She is married to Kenneth Lebaron Laneaux, a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, and proud mother to 12-year-old, Kenneth Lebaron Laneaux, Jr. 

The Alabama State Bar (ASB) is the official licensing and regulatory organization of lawyers in Alabama. Created in 1879, the Alabama State Bar became an integrated bar in 1923 by an act of the legislature. Since then, ASB programs and activities have continuously served the public and improved the justice system. It is dedicated to promoting the professional responsibility and competence of its members, improving the administration of justice and increasing the public understanding of and respect for the law.

Media Contact:
Melissa Warnke
Director of Communications, Alabama State Bar
(334) 517.2218 (o) | (256) 338.0621 (c)
melissa.warnke@alabar.org