Pro Bono Monthly Clinic on Wednesday, August 9

Our Pro Bono Monthly Clinic was held on Wednesday, August 9 (second Wednesday of the month).

Please join us in thanking all attorneys and interpreters that evening who assisted 30 clients:

Attorneys:

  • Michelle Yeung
  • Judy Lee
  • Jonathan Hernandez
  • May Chiang
  • Yun Gao
  • Kelly Diep
  • Kwok Ng
  • Asako Aiba
  • Chris Kwok
  • Tim Wong

Interpreters:

  • Wei Li
  • Mani Chander
  • Yiwen Feng
  • Wei Ling Huang

Watch an exclusive clip from Justin Chon’s ‘Gook’

Watch an exclusive clip from Justin Chon’s ‘Gook’

Funeral Arrangements for Retired Court of Appeals Judge George Bundy Smith

Thanks to MBBA for sharing this information.

Funeral Arrangements for Retired Court of Appeals Judge George Bundy Smith are as follows:

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, August 12, 2017, at Riverside Church, 490 Riverside Dr, and 120th Street, Entrances at 490 Riverside Drive & Claremont Avenue, NYC

The viewing is from 9AM to 10AM and services will begin immediately thereafter at 10AM.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Justice Bundy Smith’s honor to:

Phillips Academy
ATTN: Kathleen O’Sullivan
180 Main Street
Andover, MA 01810


Donations to the MBBA’s Honorable George Bundy Smith Scholarship fund:

Friends of the MBBA, Inc.
275 Madison Avenue, 14th Floor
New York, NY 10016


Links:

George Bundy Smith Bio on New York Historical Society of the New York Courts

Retired NY appeals court judge George Bundy Smith dies at 80


MBBA Members and Supporters:

It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of the Honorable George Bundy Smith who was an excellent jurist and giant in our profession.  He will be profoundly missed by his MBBA family, and the legal profession generally. 

The Honorable George Bundy Smith, served on the MBBA Board and founded its original scholarship fund. Appointed by Governor Mario Cuomo, Judge Smith served on the New York State Court of Appeals from 1992 to 2006. He also served as a judge on the Civil Court of New York City from 1975-1986 and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of New York from 1987-1992. A former law professor at Fordham Law School, Judge Smith was also a former Freedom Rider and a graduate of Yale University (B.A. 1959), where he was just one of three African Americans in his class, and Yale Law School (LL.B 1962). He also received a Ph.D from New York University and an LL.M from University of Virginia School of Law.

In 2014, The Metropolitan Black Bar Association established The Honorable George Bundy Smith Scholarship Fund to offer three scholarships to students who demonstrate qualities of leadership, a passion for the arts and sciences, or a commitment to diversity and academic excellence. The fund is in honor of Judge Smith, who for many years provided board leadership and guidance to the Metropolitan Black Bar Association, including starting the organization’s first scholarship fund. Above all, Judge Smith valued education and consistently leveraged his successes to the benefit of the African-American community.

Statement from Chief Judge Janet DiFiore on behalf of the New York Court of Appeals: The Court of Appeals is saddened by the death of George Bundy Smith, who served with great distinction as an Associate Judge of the Court from 1992 to 2006. A freedom rider during the civil rights struggle of the 1960s, Judge Smith remained soft-spoken, self-effacing, and completely dedicated to fairness and justice for all people throughout his career. As then-Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye said of him in 2005, “George is a man of few words, but they are absolutely the right words.” He leaves our nation a better place than he found it. We will miss him deeply.

We will provide you with information about services and memorials as we receive them.

In Service,

President Paula T. Edgar and the Board and Officers of the Metropolitan Black Bar Association

A Statement from Chief Judge Janet DiFiore on Behalf of the New York Court of Appeals (August 5, 2017)

The Court of Appeals is saddened by the death of George Bundy Smith, who served with great distinction as an Associate Judge of the Court from 1992 to 2006. A freedom rider during the civil rights struggle of the 1960s, Judge Smith remained soft-spoken, self-effacing, and completely dedicated to fairness and justice for all people throughout his career. As then-Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye said of him in 2005, “George is a man of few words, but they are absolutely the right words.” He leaves our nation a better place than he found it. We will miss him deeply.

AABANY joins the entire legal community in mourning Hon. George Bundy Smith, a trailblazing attorney and jurist, for his contributions to making positive change in the legal profession and society as a whole.

Please consider supporting the Metropolitan Black Bar Association (MBBA) Hon. George Bundy Smith Scholarship Fund. More from MBBA:

The Honorable George Bundy Smith, served on the MBBA Board and founded its original scholarship fund. Appointed by Governor Mario Cuomo, Judge Smith served on the New York State Court of Appeals from 1992 to 2006. He also served as a judge on the Civil Court of New York City from 1975-1986 and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of New York from 1987-1992. A former law professor at Fordham Law School, Judge Smith was also a former Freedom Rider and a graduate of Yale University (B.A. 1959), where he was just one of three African Americans in his class, and Yale Law School (LL.B 1962). He also received a Ph.D from New York University and an LL.M from University of Virginia School of Law.

In 2014, The Metropolitan Black Bar Association established The Honorable George Bundy Smith Scholarship Fund to offer three scholarships to students who demonstrate qualities of leadership, a passion for the arts and sciences, or a commitment to diversity and academic excellence. The fund is in honor of Judge Smith, who for many years provided board leadership and guidance to the Metropolitan Black Bar Association, including starting the organization’s first scholarship fund. Above all, Judge Smith valued education and consistently leveraged his successes to the benefit of the African-American community.

All That Glitters Is Gold

All That Glitters Is Gold

AABANY Member Eve Guillergan Asked to Serve on Governor Cuomo’s New York State Council on Women and Girls

AABANY Member Eve Guillergan Asked to Serve on Governor Cuomo’s New York State Council on Women and Girls

Andy Hahn Discusses Biases, Barriers, and the Bamboo Ceiling within the Asian American Legal Community

Andy Hahn Discusses Biases, Barriers, and the Bamboo Ceiling within the Asian American Legal Community

Serve the APA Community by Joining the AABANY Community Response Task Force

AABANY’s Issues Committee is pleased to invite you to join the newly formed AABANY Community Response Task Force!

The Community Response Task Force (CRTF) is AABANY’s answer to the rapidly changing legal landscape and the need for quick, effective, and coordinated responses to the emergent issues that affect our communities. AABANY is firmly committed to being a strong voice and steadfast advocate on behalf of the Asian-American/Pacific-Islander community. In the past several months, we have all been witness to sweeping changes that necessitated powerful legal responses. While there have been some great triumphs, there were often times when it was difficult to obtain information, to find ways to contribute, or to organize a response quickly enough to be effective.

The CRTF is specifically designed to address these needs. The CRTF will serve as a central clearinghouse for information and coordination – tailoring the alerts sent to each volunteer based on that volunteer’s preferences and the needs of the community. Alerts and actions will range from emergency legal services to direct non-legal service actions and from workshops to rallies. 

Furthermore, the CRTF will not simply be a reactive body but we will seek to proactively research and prepare for issues on the horizon by reaching out to experts and formulating effective responses. We will also be reaching out and collaborating with other organizing bodies in order to present a more united and broad-based response to issues that affect our communities.

So, where does that leave you?

The CRTF is seeking first and foremost to create a database of willing, ready, and able volunteers, like you, who want be a part of the response. We will activate volunteers based on the subject area, the type of response, and the interests of each volunteer. 

We are also looking for people to become members of the Task Force itself, helping to research and anticipate possible future issues, reaching out to experts and developing toolkits, and coordinating with
other organizations.

If you are interested, please fill out the this form or feel free to email us directly at crtf@AABANY.org

We keep all responses and information confidential in the Task Force Database. Information contained therein will not be shared with anyone outside of the Task Force and are solely for the purpose of organizing and coordinating Task Force activities.

To learn more about the Issues Committee, visit http://www.aabany.org/?page=154