Month: April 2022

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COVID-19 Rapid Needs Assessment Survey Now Available In Multiple Languages

Survey participation needed to better understand community needs during the pandemic.

NAPABA has partnered with the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) and the NYU Center for the Study of Asian American Health (CSAAH) to conduct a survey to learn more about the ongoing experiences and needs of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders living in the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic. Input from this survey will help develop resources and programs to support these communities. You can take the survey here and it will remain open until 1,000 responses are collected. 

Take Survey

Purpose of the survey: We are trying to learn more about the current and ongoing experiences and needs of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Eligibility: (a) aged 18 or above; (b) self-identify as a(n) Asian American, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander; and (c) be a person living in the United States. 

Survey languages now available: English, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Chuukese, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Marshallese, Native Hawaiian, Nepali, Punjabi, Samoan, Tagalog, Tongan, Urdu, Vietnamese. 

You will receive an Amazon gift card as a token of thanks for your participation after the survey has been completed. If you are interested in receiving the gift card, you will be asked to complete a short form at the end of the survey link. No survey information will be linked with your personal information.

If you have already taken this survey, please share with those who are eligible. If you have questions or concerns about the study, please reach out to Navdeep Singh, Interim Policy Director, at [email protected]. Feel free to share this link with your family and friends, but we ask that you refrain from posting on your social media. 

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ABA Announces Wendy Shiba as Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Honoree

For Immediate Release: 
Date: April 8, 2022 

Contact: Mary Tablante, Associate Strategic Communications & Marketing Director

WASHINGTON – This week, the American Bar Association’s Commission on Women in the Profession announced NAPABA Past President Wendy Shiba as a recipient of the 2022 Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award. Each year, the Commission honors up to five outstanding women lawyers who have achieved professional excellence and paved the way for other women in the legal profession.

A retired C-suite executive, Wendy made sustainable impacts and provided a stable hand at three NYSE-listed companies where she navigated her companies through multiple challenges and transitions. Wendy is a member of the ABA’s House of Delegates and Standing Committee on Bar Activities and Services, President-Elect of Enix-Ross’s Presidential Appointments Committee, and Vice Chair of the Committee on Rights of Women on the ABA Section on Civil Rights and Social Justice.

“It was NAPABA’s honor to nominate Wendy Shiba, an exceptionally gifted corporate attorney from Altadena, California, for this award. Wendy exemplifies the spirit of Margaret Brent through her accomplishments and dedication to uplifting women,” said A.B. Cruz III, NAPABA acting president. “Not only has she had a career where she was either the first Asian American, woman, or person of color in various spaces, it was always important for her to create opportunities for others. Driven by her passion for equality and ensuring underserved communities have legal representation, Wendy has used her business acumen, wisdom, leadership, and approachability to benefit her local community, the APA community, and the legal profession. She is a true champion for women and diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.”

In addition to being Past President of NAPABA, Wendy is a member of its Leadership Advisory Council and serves as Advisory Board Member for the 2021-2022 Board of Governors. Wendy also serves on the Board of Trustees for the Japanese American National Museum and on the Steering Committee for the Los Angeles Summer Legal Institute, Just the Beginning Foundation’s cornerstone youth program.

Also receiving the Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award this year are:

  • Michele Goodwin; Chancellor’s Professor, University of California, Irvine School of Law; Senior Lecturer, Harvard Medical School; Host of On The Issues With Michele Goodwin at Ms. Magazine; Laguna Beach, CA.
  • Christina L. Martini; Partner, Global Head of McDermott’s Trademark Prosecution and Controversy Practice, McDermott Will & Emery; Chicago, IL.
  • Laura J. Schumacher; Vice Chairman, External Affairs and Chief Legal Officer, AbbVie; North Chicago, IL.
  • Myra C. Selby; Partner, Ice Miller; Indianapolis, IN.


The award recipients will be honored on Sunday, August 7 in Chicago.

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The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), represents the interests of over 60,000 Asian Pacific American (APA) legal professionals and nearly 90 national, state, and local APA bar associations. NAPABA is a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting APA communities. Through its national network, NAPABA provides a strong voice for increased diversity of the federal and state judiciaries, advocates for equal opportunity in the workplace, works to eliminate hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiment, and promotes the professional development of people of all backgrounds in the legal profession.

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NAPABA Coffee House: Episodes 1-5

Watch now for insights from the General Counsels of Howmet Aerospace, AmerisourceBergen, eBay, JLL and Target

Why should you “never run away from a job”? What advice would a Chief Legal Officer have for young law firm associates? Why is micromanaging the “worst of all worlds”? Where does confidence come from? And when is the right time to leave a role?

Hear what leading APA General Counsels of Fortune 1000 companies have to say about these questions, and more, on NAPABA Coffee House!

NAPABA Coffee House is a series of one-on-one interviews with APA General Counsels of Fortune 1000 companies hosted by Lawrence Tu, former Chief Legal Officer of CBS Corporation. Whether you are a young lawyer or a seasoned professional, NAPABA Coffee House is brimming with knowledge and experiences we can all learn from.

Watch Episodes 1-5 now:

  • Episode 1: Lola Lin, Chief Legal Officer of Howmet Aerospace. Lola Lin is the Chief Legal Officer of Howmet Aerospace, a leading global provider of advanced engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries. Prior to her role at Howmet, Lola served as General Counsel at Airgas and held various in-house roles at Air Liquide and Dell. 
  • Episode 2: John Chou, Retiring EVP and Chief Legal Officer at AmerisourceBergen. John Chou is the retiring Chief Legal Officer at AmerisourceBergen, a Top 10 company on the Fortune 500 list and one of the largest global pharmaceutical sourcing and distribution services companies. John joined AmerisourceBergen in 2002. Prior to that, John served as Member at a law firm in Philadelphia, Senior Corporate Counsel at Cigna Corporation, Chief European Counsel at ARCO Chemical Europe, as well as Chief Corporate Counsel and Assistant General Counsel at ARCO Chemical Company. 
  • Episode 3: Marie Oh Huber, Chief Legal Officer at eBay Inc. Marie Oh Huber is SVP, Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel and Secretary at eBay Inc., a global commerce leader which connects millions of buyers and sellers in more than 190 markets around the world. Marie has been at eBay since 2015. Prior to joining eBay, Marie served as General Counsel at Agilent Technologies, Inc. and corporate counsel at the Hewlett-Packard Company (former name). 
  • Episode 4: Alan Tse, Global Chief Legal Officer of Jones Lang LaSalle. Alan Tse is Global Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary of Jones Lang LaSalle, Inc (JLL). JLL is a leading professional services firm that specializes in real estate and investment management. As December 31, 2020, JLL had an annual revenue of $16.6 billion, operations in over 80 countries and a global workforce of approximately 91,000. Prior to JLL, Alan was General Counsel at Petco, Churchill Downs, LG Electronics MobileComm U.S.A. and two startups. 
  • Episode 5: Don Liu, Chief Legal and Risk Officer at Target. Don Liu is the Chief Legal and Risk Officer for Target Corporation, where he oversees all legal, risk and compliance, corporate governance and governmental affairs matters for the company. Prior to joining Target in 2016, Don was General Counsel at Xerox Corporation. He also held in-house legal leadership roles at Toll Brothers, IKON Office Solutions, and Aetna U.S. Healthcare. 

NAPABA Coffee House is presented by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) in collaboration with the Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession. It is produced by Genevieve Antono (Harvard Law ’22) as her student fellowship project with the Center on the Legal Profession.

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The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), represents the interests of over 60,000 Asian Pacific American (APA) legal professionals and nearly 90 national, state, and local APA bar associations. NAPABA is a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting APA communities. Through its national network, NAPABA provides a strong voice for increased diversity of the federal and state judiciaries, advocates for equal opportunity in the workplace, works to eliminate hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiment, and promotes the professional development of people of all backgrounds in the legal profession.

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Prosecutors Committee Hosts Spring Cocktail Mixer

The AABANY Prosecutors Committee finally held their Brooklyn get together after being postponed since December due to the Omnicron variant of COVID.  Over 50 former and current prosecutors from Queens, Brooklyn, Nassau and Manhattan joined Committee Co-Chairs, David Chiang of the Queens DA’s Office and Joe Gim of the Nassau County DA’s Office to honor James Lin, who recently retired after 30 years of service at DANY (District Attorney New York) and KCDA (Kings County District Attorney).  Prosecutors have been on the front lines of the crime wave that has struck New York City, and it was great to share the stories of our challenges and our efforts to overcome them!  We also were joined by AABANY Board Member Karen Yau, who works on AABANY’s Anti-Asian Violence Task Force, and Hannah Yu, DANY’s Chief of the Hate Crimes Unit.  We are so excited to see so many Asian Americans representing the people of New York State! To learn more about the Prosecutors Committee, go to https://www.aabany.org/page/73.

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AABANY Presents Ask a Mid-Level: How to be a Stellar Associate

On March 11, AABANY’s Corporate Law Committee hosted a panel discussion on how junior associates can become star team players. Over 60 attendees were present over Zoom. The moderator was Ashley Wong of Sidley Austin and the speakers, all mid-levels at leading law firms, were: 

  • Keli Huang, Kirkland & Ellis
  • Douglas Kim, Debevoise & Plimpton
  • Amrita Mukherjee, Weil, Gotshal & Manges
  • James Park, Sidley Austin

The purpose of the panel was to provide guidance to junior associates on how to build stronger workplace relationships and produce deliverables more efficiently. This was an instructional program that provided 1.0 CLE credits in Law Practice Management. 

Advice from the speakers included researching a deal team’s working style before accepting an assignment, getting to know the firm’s research tools and letting people know when one has made a mistake so it can be solved faster. 

The event ended with a gift card raffle. Congratulations to Terry Shen and Evelyn Mau for being the lucky winners of a Seamless gift card! 

Thank you to all who attended this event. To learn more about the Corporate Law Committee, please visit https://www.aabany.org/page/128. 

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AABANY Celebrates AAPI Heritage Night at Brooklyn Nets Game

On Tuesday, March 29, 2022, AABANY members attended AAPI Heritage Night at the Barclays Center to watch the Brooklyn Nets take on the Detroit Pistons. During this inaugural event by the Nets to celebrate AAPI cultural heritage, female South Asian acapella group New York Masti performed the national anthem, Chinese-American rapper Bohan Phoenix performed during halftime, and AAPI pioneers were honored during the game.  As for the game itself, fans enjoyed an exciting game where the Nets overcame an early deficit to win by a final score of 130-123 with Kevin Durant leading the way with 41 points. Thank you to those who came out and stay tuned for future AABANY Membership Committee events!

To learn more about the Membership Committee, go to https://www.aabany.org/page/130.

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AABANY Co-Sponsors Historic Reenactment: “Kung Flu”: A History of Violence and Hostility Against Asian Americans

On March 24, 2022 AABANY co-sponsored a reenactment on the history of anti-Asian violence and hostility at the New York City Bar Association in midtown Manhattan. The script was written by Kathy Hirata Chin and her husband, the Hon. Denny Chin, longtime leaders and supporters of AABANY, who spearheaded the AABANY Trial Reenactment project. “Kung Flu” marks the Trial Reenactment Team’s 14th production. “Kung Flu” was first performed to a standing room only audience at the NAPABA National Convention in Washington, DC, in December 2021.

The program examined the history of anti-Asian violence and hostility through narration, reenactment of court proceedings, and historic photos.  Asian Americans did not hesitate to fight for their rights in the courts, and these cases raised issues that were — and still are — important to all Americans.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been more than 10,000 incidents of violence and hostility against Asian Americans nationwide.  But this is nothing new, for there is a long and little-known history of anti-Asian violence in this country — from the lynching of 15 Chinese in Los Angeles in 1871 to the expulsion of all the South Asian residents of Bellingham, Washington in 1907 to five days of rioting and attacks against Filipino men in Watsonville, California in 1930.  

​​Likewise, the recent rhetoric about the “China virus” and “Kung Flu” is not the first time Asian Americans have been targeted over purported health concerns.  In 1870, San Francisco passed two health ordinances that were enforced only against the “Chinese and Asiatics.”  In 1900, amidst fears of the bubonic plague, San Francisco required “the inoculation of all Chinese residents” and quarantined Chinatown. The ordinances were not applied to members of any other groups.

The reenactment acknowledges the challenges Asian Americans have faced in the past and  reminds us that much is still to be done. 

We thank Judge Denny Chin and Kathy Hirata Chin for leading the AABANY Trial Reenactment Team and all the participants for giving their time to raise awareness on anti-Asian violence and hostility. We thank the New York City Bar Association for co-sponsoring and allowing us to perform “Kung Flu” in the Great Hall. President Sheila Boston presented opening remarks at the start of the program and performed as Judge Gabrielle Kirk McDonald. To learn more about AABANY’s reenactments project, please visit https://reenactments.aabany.org/.

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AABANY LGBT Committee Hosts Lunar New Year Dinner Discussion

On March 23, the LGBT Committee hosted a group dinner at Wu’s Wonton King in Manhattan Chinatown. Attendees enjoyed a delicious family-style feast featuring peking duck, Wu’s signature wonton soup, and crispy prawns, among other dishes. 

The dinner honored Committee Co-Chair John Vang for his five years of service. Co-Chairs Glenn Magpantay and Jacob Chen surprised John with a bouquet and a speech thanking him for all his hard work.

The evening also included a roundtable discussion on future programming by the LGBT Committee. Attendees reflected on what queer Asian spaces could look like. The conversation engaged voices from all areas of law, from the Honorable Richard Tsai of the New York Criminal Court to students at Cardozo School of Law. 
Thank you to everyone who attended the event! To learn more about the LGBT Committee, please visit https://www.aabany.org/page/439.

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AABANY Membership Committee’s #RestaurantSeries Continues at Nowon, March 31

On Thursday, March 31, 2022, AABANY’s Membership Committee hosted their last event of the fiscal year, supporting Asian-owned restaurant, Nowon. The #RestaurantSeries was created to support Asian-owned restaurants recovering from the impact of the pandemic.  Twelve members were in attendance enjoying Korean-fusion cuisine.  We ordered the “Mixtape” menu, Classic – Vol. 1, which included Korean Fried Chicken, their Legendary Burger, Crispy Tater Tots, and Yuja Donut Holes for dessert. Chef-owner Jae Lee came out during dessert to say ‘hello’ to our group. Everyone was excited to be back in-person, dining comfortably with others and learning about the diverse membership body.  Thank you to those who came out and stay tuned for future AABANY Membership Committee events!