Diane Murphy Quinlan
2019 Saint Thomas More Recipient
Attorney Diane Murphy Quinlan has been named the 2019 Saint Thomas More recipient by the Manchester St. Patrick’s Parade Committee. She will be honored during the 2020 Parade on Sunday, March 29th at 12 noon on Elm Street in Manchester.
The award is presented by the committee to a lawyer or judge who is a practicing Catholic and who embodies the spirit of Saint Thomas More in her courage, dedication, integrity, civility, and compassion toward others. She has also received this same award from the New Hampshire Catholic Lawyers Guild and was recognized by the Diocese of Manchester at the “Red Mass” in October of 2019.
Attorney Quinlan received her BA in English from the College of the Holy Cross and her JD degree, cum laude, from Suffolk University Law School. Following graduation from law school, she served as a law clerk to the late Honorable Martin F. Loughlin, senior judge for the United States District Court for the District of NH. She practiced law at Conley, Haley, O’Neil & Kaplan, PA in Bath, Maine, and Rath, Young and Pignatelli, P.C. in Concord, NH before she joined the Manchester law firm of Devine, Millimet & Branch, PA, where she practiced labor and employment law.
In 2002, Attorney Quinlan joined the staff of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester and served as general counsel and Vice Chancellor. In 2004, Bishop McCormack appointed her Chancellor, making her the first lay person to hold that position in the Manchester diocese and one of a few female chancellors in the country at that time. She served as general counsel and Chancellor of Diocese of Manchester until June 2019.
Attorney Quinlan currently serves as the Assistant Director of Charitable Trusts for the New Hampshire Department of Justice.
In 2011, Pope Benedict XIV awarded Attorney Quinlan the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Medal for her service to the Catholic Church. In 1998, she was the recipient of the New Hampshire Bar Foundation’s Robert E. Kirby Award.
Attorney Quinlan has been active in her community. She currently serves as an advisory board member for Trinity High School, a member of the Boards of Directors of Camps Fatima and Bernadette, and a track coach for New Hampshire Special Olympics. In the past, she has served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Catholic Medical Center and a member of the Board of Directors of St. Joseph Community Services. She has also served as a volunteer for New Horizons New Hampshire, the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation road race, the Merrimack Youth Association, and Our Lady of Mercy Parish.
Attorney Quinlan and her husband Gary reside in Merrimack, NH and have 2 grown children.
Attorney Diane Murphy Quinlan is a most impressive recipient of the Manchester Saint Patrick’s Parade – Saint Thomas More Award.
Please come to the Parade to help us recognize her for her hard work on behalf of the Catholic Church and for the citizens of Manchester.