Steven Cousins receives Trailblazer award from 100 Black Men of Metropolitan St. Louis

Steven N. Cousins, an Armstrong Teasdale partner who helped break racial barriers for local African American lawyers, will receive the 2013 Trailblazer Award from 100 Black Men of Metropolitan St. Louis during the organization’s 23rd Annual Black Tie Gala Celebration on October 26, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis at The Arch. Cousins is being recognized for his service to the community and his commitment to uplift and empower area youth.

A member of Armstrong Teasdale’s Executive Committee, Cousins is founder of the firm’s Financial Restructuring, Reorganization and Bankruptcy practice group. When Cousins was hired by Armstrong Teasdale in 1981, he became the firm’s first African American lawyer. He was named chair of the firm’s first bankruptcy practice in 1984 and became the first African American partner in 1987.

He is also an active community leader and has served for many years as general counsel and an executive committee member of the St. Louis Regional Chamber. In addition, Cousins is vice-chairman and board of trustees member of St. Louis Children’s Hospital; an honorary board of trustees member of the St. Louis Art Museum; founding (past) co-chair of the Inner-City High School Summer Internship Program; founding (past) co-chair of the St. Louis Public Schools Foundation; and a community advisory board member of the University of Missouri-St. Louis Center for Ethics in Public Life. In recognition of his contributions, the St. Louis Gateway Classic Sports Foundation awarded Cousins its African American Outstanding Citizens Award in 2011.

Listed for more than 15 years in The Best Lawyers in America® for his work in bankruptcy and creditor-debtor rights law, Cousins received his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1980 and B.A. from Yale University in 1977.

The mission of the 100 Black Men of America, Inc. is to improve the quality of life and enhance educational and economic opportunities for all African Americans. The St. Louis chapter, which was founded in 1983, is committed to the intellectual development of youth based on the precept of “respect for family.” Its Annual Black Tie Celebration is one of its many events that raise funds for scholarships and mentoring programs.