McGuireWoods partner Jacquelyn E. Stone has received an inaugural “Women Who Drive Richmond” award honoring exemplary leadership and community service. The awards program was created by the Richmond Times-Dispatch and Richmond Raceway.
Stone is a trailblazing attorney, mentor and civic leader who has earned numerous national and local honors for the impact she has had on the legal profession and in her community.
“I am honored to be included in this group of accomplished business and community leaders and grateful to my McGuireWoods colleagues for their friendship and support,” Stone said.
A Harvard Law School graduate, Stone was the first Black woman to be named a partner at a major law firm in Virginia. She created and chaired McGuireWoods’ Diversity & Inclusion Committee, is a former member of the firm’s Board of Partners and served as firmwide hiring partner for more than 20 years.
In addition to representing corporations and associations on Virginia legislative and regulatory matters, Stone assists companies in immigration-related matters, including advising on immigration compliance and obtaining employment-based visas for employees of multinational companies.
Stone has served on numerous state and local boards and commissions, including the Virginia Commonwealth University board of visitors, the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership, Venture Richmond, the Virginia Commission for the Arts, the Science Museum of Virginia board of trustees and the Richmond Forum.
As co-founder of Partnership for the Future, she helped establish a college preparation and workforce development program for Richmond-area high school students. Nationally, she sits on the board of Just the Beginning – A Pipeline Organization, encouraging minority and low-income students to pursue legal careers.
In 2021, the Virginia Foundation for Research and Economic Education, a nonpartisan business coalition, presented Stone with its inaugural advocacy award and named the honor after her. In addition, the Metro Richmond Women’s Bar Association honored her with its Phoebe P. Hall Mentorship Award in 2021; Virginia Lawyers Weekly named her to its “Influential Women of Law” list in 2020; and the Richmond Times-Dispatch recognized her in its “Person of the Year” program in 2019.
The “Women Who Drive Richmond” will be recognized during a Feb. 23, 2023, luncheon at the Richmond Raceway Torque Club.