Gail B. Gordon, Esq. is a well-recognized and respected attorney, effective local advocate, and business professional. Through her successful firm, GBGordon & Associates, she focuses much of her efforts on issue advocacy and community and public affairs. Her clients include national consumer brands, a telecom giant, and a New Jersey movie studio complex. She also dedicates a significant amount of her time serving on hospital, charitable and business boards.
As an undergraduate at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, she volunteered for Dick Thornburgh’s successful gubernatorial campaign. Thornburgh loaned Gordon to the Reagan White House, where she was a speechwriter, primarily serving the EPA on matters involving clean energy and business regulations.
She then joined Howard J. Rubenstein Associates, the world-renowned crisis management and public relations firm. At Rubenstein, she served a number of clients, most notably US Tobacco (UST), whose president was Miami Dolphin football great and NFL Hall of Famer Nick Buoniconti. Before leaving to join Buoniconti, Gordon became Rubenstein’s youngest Senior VP.
In 1986, subsequent to the catastrophic football injury sustained by Buoniconti’s son, Marc, she became Vice President at UST and helped Buoniconti create The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at the University of Miami. The program remains today as the largest, most comprehensive spinal cord research center in the world. For her efforts, Gordon was named University of Miami Medical Center’s “Woman of the Year” in 1990. She is featured in the 2020 HBO Emmy-nominated documentary, “The Many Lives of Nick Buoniconti,” and her time with Nick and Marc Buoniconti remains an important and seminal part of her life’s journey.
Gordon then returned to her native Pittsburgh to complete her law school education. She worked part-time with her friend, hockey legend Mario Lemieux, to create the Mario Lemieux Foundation dedicated to cancer and neonatal research. Gordon was part of Lemieux’s team that purchased the Pittsburgh Penguins out of bankruptcy.
In 2006, Gordon married New Jersey State Senator Bob Gordon. The couple are applauded for their bi-partisan take on New Jersey politics, often irreverently called “NJ’s Carville and Matalin.” They have been the subject of numerous articles where they have been recognized as a top New Jersey Power Couple. Gordon has been named to the NJ Globe “Power 100” since its inception.
Gordon began her New Jersey business career practicing law, Of Counsel, to Governor Jim Florio’s firm — Florio, Perrucci, Steinhardt & Fader, and remains connected to the organization. In addition, she served on the board of SB One Bank and is currently a member of the Provident Bank Advisory Board.
Gordon’s lifelong friendship with the Thornburgh has led her to become an advocate for persons with disabilities (as US Attorney General Dick Thornburgh is widely heralded for authoring the Americans with Disabilities Act). She currently serves as a board member of Community Options, a 13-state organization dedicated to housing and employment for persons with disabilities. In 2018, she was selected for the Betty Pendler Award for her service.
Her accolades include the 2022 CASA Honoree, 2021 Trailblazer Award (NJBIA), 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award (Duquesne University), 2014 Woman of Distinction (CIANJ) and the 2013 Carol Murphy Award (Women’s Political Caucus). Gordon serves as a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Rutgers University’s Eagleton Institute of Politics, and has annually taught young women at the “Ready to Run” two-day seminar.
Gordon is exceptionally proud of her role as a Trustee of the Hackensack Meridian Health Network. In 2022, she was also appointed to the Advisory Board of Fairleigh Dickenson University’s School of Public & Global Affairs. Additional current board service includes Bergen CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate), Paterson Habitat Advisory Board, University of Pittsburgh’s Dick Thornburgh Center for Law & Public Policy, Vice Chair, Community Options, and Felician University.
Gordon served on Chris Christie’s 2008-09 transition team in several capacities. In 2011 and 2012, she chaired the New Jersey Governor’s Conference for Women and tripled attendance in her second year. She served for Governor Christie’s entire administration as Vice Chair, NJ Hall of Fame Commission. In 2019, Governor Murphy appointed Gordon to the Complete Count Commission.
Gordon graduated from Carnegie Mellon University (BA) and attended the University of Miami Law School and Duquesne University School of Law. She received her JD with distinction and is a member of the Bar in good standing in PA (2004) and NJ (2008).