KU Law to honor distinguished alumni

LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas School of Law will recognize Judge Dan Crabtree, Steve Leben and Diane Parrish with its 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award at a private dinner on April 18 in Lawrence. The award celebrates graduates for their professional achievements, contributions to the legal field and service to their community and the university.

The Hon. Dan Crabtree, Class of 1981, spent his 32-year-long career as a practicing lawyer with Stinson LLP. During his first 10 years in practice, he represented public school districts in the Kansas City metropolitan school-desegregation case alongside some of Kansas City’s most accomplished trial lawyers. Crabtree then represented businesses and business owners in commercial cases, consumer protection class actions and antitrust litigation. During his last six years in practice, he served as general counsel for the Kansas City Royals.  

Throughout his career, Crabtree participated in civic and charitable matters. He served on the board of directors for the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation and the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission. He also served as chair of KU Law School’s Board of Governors.

In 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Crabtree to serve on the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, to fill the seat vacated by fellow KU Law graduate Judge John Watson Lungstrum. He was confirmed in 2014 and recently qualified for senior status in 2025.

Steve Leben, Class of 1982, is the Douglas R. Stripp Missouri Distinguished Professor of Law and associate dean for faculty at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, where he teaches and writes in the areas of procedural justice, appellate practice, statutory interpretation, evidence and professional responsibility. He joined the UMKC faculty full-time in 2020 and was named to the Stripp chair in 2022. He taught part-time at KU Law from 2007 to 2022.

Leben served as a judge on the Kansas Court of Appeals from 2007 to 2020, where he authored more than 1,000 opinions, and previously served as a Johnson County district judge from 1993 to 2007. Both appointments came through Kansas's merit-selection process, and he was retained by voters four times in each role. Prior to the bench, he practiced civil litigation in Kansas City, including six years with what is now Stinson LLP.

A nationally recognized leader on procedural justice, Leben has trained judges across the United States and published widely on fairness and judicial decision-making. The National Center for State Courts honored that work in 2014 with its highest judicial award, the William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence, presented in person by Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. He has also received the Chief Justice Richard W. Holmes Award of Merit and three additional national awards from the American Judges Association. He is an elected member of the American Law Institute, served as president of the American Judges Association and edited a national journal for judges, Court Review, for 20 years.

Diane Parrish, Class of 1979, began her legal career at the Kansas City firm Shook, Hardy & Bacon, focusing on products liability defense litigation. After leaving the firm, Parrish devoted herself to nonprofits, community and faith-based organizations, where she held a variety of leadership roles. In her spare time, she took creative writing classes and experimented with writing fiction pieces.

She published her first novel, “Something Better,” in 2024. The book received several awards and honors, including first prize in Women’s Fiction from The Pacific Book Awards and the Maincrest Media Book Award.  

View previous Distinguished Alumni Award recipients on the law school’s website.

The law school will also recognize James Woods Green Medallion honorees and members of the Dean’s Club. Named after the law school’s first dean, the medallion recognizes the school’s major financial supporters. This year’s honorees include:

• Brett Brenner, Class of 1994, and Brian Reid
• Bonnie Buchele and Bruce Hopkins, SJD Class of 2016
• Richard Cram, Class of 1983
• Cathy Havener Greer, Class of 1976
• Nan Grube, Class of 1994
• Kraig Kohring, Class of 1992, and Molly Kohring.