The Conley Society
The Conley Society is a donor recognition society for esteemed alumni, friends, and faculty of NYU School of Law who have established a legacy commitment to the Law School through a planned gift.
Named after Judge Charles Swinger Conley ‘55 and his wife, Ellen Conley, Conley Society members share a lasting commitment to excellence in legal education. Your planned gift continues NYU School of Law’s mission since 1835—training and educating future leaders in the legal profession who will go on to make a striking impact in the world for generations to come.
Your NYU Law Legacy
Members of the Conley Society have made gifts through their wills, trusts, life insurance designations, life income gifts, retirement plans, and other planned giving vehicles to provide lasting support for our extraordinary institution and talented students. For more information on planned giving, visit our gift planning website.
If you have already made a legacy commitment to NYU School of Law through your will, trust, or other estate plan, please let us know. We would like to thank you for your generosity, ensure that we fully understand your gift intent, and warmly welcome you as a member of the Conley Society.
Honoring Judge Charles Swinger Conley ’55 and his wife, Ellen Conley
Judge Charles Swinger Conley ’55 was a civil rights attorney and Alabama’s first elected black judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Macon County. His wife Ellen Conley, was a former educator for the Department of Defense who served as his right-hand, chauffeur, and protector throughout the turbulent ’60s. During the height of the civil rights movement, Judge Conley’s office on Bainbridge Street in Montgomery, Alabama operated as a hub for social activism where leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, and Ralph Abernathy, Sr. sought his legal advice and counsel.
The Conleys believed deeply in the power of education and were longtime supporters of NYU School of Law. Judge Charles S. Conley is counted amongst NYU Law’s most brilliant legal minds, and his impact on the legal profession and the civil rights movement is a testimony to our institution.
The Honorable Charles Swinger Conley Scholarship within the AnBryce Program was established through a bequest made by Judge Conley—securing a permanent memorial honoring Judge Conley’s historic career and commitment to justice and ensuring that future graduates would continue to have the chance to pursue their own passions in civil rights and public interest law. Prior to her passing in December 2018, Ellen Conley also named NYU Law as a beneficiary of her own estate.
"NYU Law gave my husband a chance to study the law. A chance he never would have had otherwise, and what he learned gave him the tools to fight for change. We both wanted to give back to the community that had really embraced us, in the hopes that others would have similar transformational experiences." —Ellen Conley
Frequently Asked Questions
A member of the Conly Society may be an individual, couple, corporation, organization, or foundation who has incorporated NYU Law in their planned giving. Gifts may take many forms and include estate plans, wills, trusts, life income gifts, retirement plans, life insurance policies, and additional vehicles.
Conley Society members are not expected to pay dues or make additional obligations of any kind.
Conley Society members are publicly recognized only upon express permission, or may request full anonymity.
Conley Society members may designate their legacy gift to any area of their choosing at NYU Law.
Yes. Conley Society members receive exclusive invitations to Conley Society events, including luncheons, receptions, and lectures delivered by some of the Law School’s key constituents. Members also receive priority updates on exciting developments at NYU Law, and are part of an integral community of donors who are committed to a continued legacy of legal education excellence.