Application Deadline: Friday, August 18 at 8:00 pm ET
The NAPABA Prospective Partners Program (PPP) application is now open! If you are a senior associate or of counsel at a major law firm who is approaching consideration for partnership, the PPP is designed for you. The PPP aims to increase the number of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander partners at major law firms through introduction, mentorship, and relationship building. Sessions will take place at the 2023 NAPABA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, November 9-12.
Prospective partners will receive mentorship and guidance on their career development and connect with senior in-house counsel where they will have an opportunity to introduce themselves and the services of their firms.
Additionally, prospective partners will be paired with a partner mentor from a different law firm who will provide feedback and guidance on the prospective partner’s introduction presentation and career development.
The deadline to apply for this program is 8:00 pm ET on Friday, August 18.
On April 5, 2023, the IP Committee continued its “Dumplings & Discussion” fireside chat series. This time the committee was honored to have Karen Won, Partner at Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C., as the guest. Participants enjoyed pork and chive dumplings, chicken dumplings, Buddha dumplings, and many other items.
Karen was interviewed by the “Dumplings & Discussion” inaugural guest, Andy Yoo (Savvas Learning Company), and discussed her path to becoming a specialist in trademarks including in life sciences trademarks and drug naming matters. Karen shared many interesting facts about how pharmaceuticals are branded. Karen also talked about career development and work-life balance.
After the in-depth discussion and lively Q&A that followed, attendees continued to enjoy more dumplings and discussions with drinks during the networking reception.
Thanks to Fish & Richardson for being such gracious hosts.
Look out for the next IP Committee event. Click here to learn more about the IP Committee.
Over 40 attendees gathered for a virtual breakfast hosted by AABANY’s Women’s Committee on March 10th. The featured speakers were Grace Fu, General Counsel of KAYAK/Open Table and incoming AABANY Board Director, and Kazuko Wachter, Chief Legal and Strategy Officer of Prism Financial Products and current AABANY Board Director. The conversation was moderated by Jennifer Wu, Partner at Paul, Weiss and AABANY Women’s Committee Co-Chair.
The discussion opened with the speakers’ transition to an in-house career path. Grace and Kazuko both had to quickly gain business knowledge in their new roles. Both affirmed the importance of asking questions from people with different types of expertise. Grace and Kazuko then shared their views on making connections in the workplace, taking risks and trying to achieve work-life balance.
One key theme from the conversation was authenticity at work. Coming from her own experience as a mother of three, Jennifer asked Grace and Kazuko how much of their personal lives they bring into their professional ones. Kazuko said she makes a point to be herself even if it does not align with conventional expectations. Grace highlighted that the pandemic has given many people, herself included, the opportunity to show more of themselves when taking calls at home or with family in the background.
Attendees were engaged throughout the hour-long conversation, most keeping their cameras turned on until the end. Those who pre-registered received a Grub Hub gift card to enjoy breakfast delivered to their homes. The Women’s Committee hopes to resume in-person breakfast meetings going forward, as has been done in the past, before the pandemic.
Thank you to everyone who attended and to the Women’s Committee for organizing this event. To learn more about the Women’s Committee, please visit https://www.aabany.org/page/122.
NAPABA is now accepting applications for the 2022-23 Leadership Advancement Program (LAP) for August 2022 to February 2023. LAP is a year-long experiential program, meant to equip mid-career attorneys with a skill set that will transform them into leaders, professionally and personally, while cultivating close-knit friends and resources. Attorneys in the program will:
Assess leadership and communications styles and use exercises to gain better self-awareness
Train to be more effective communicators and listeners
Learn how to set goals and ground their career vision
Become better at anticipating the oppositions faced in challenge
Grow their executive presence
Leave with a cohort of 24 advisors and friends
This cohort of 24 individuals will launch in a virtual environment, with the possibility of concluding with in-person workshops.
Grace Jamgochian, a Partner at Shearman & Sterling, a member of AABANY and Vice Chair of its Women’s Committee, and a former participant in the LAP Program described her experience as follows:
“Although I participated in the Leadership Advancement Program almost 5 years ago, I still have constant contact with my LAP community across the nation; we regularly seek advice from each other on all kinds of matters from parenting to random legal musings. The perspective you get from a small (but not too small) group of seasoned attorneys is really incredible!”
You must become a member of NAPABA to take advantage of this exclusive opportunity
If you have any questions or wish to apply, please visit the NAPABA website for more details or contact Maureen Gelwicks, Operations Director.
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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.
On January 17, 2020, the Asia Practice Committee and Student Outreach Committee successfully co-hosted an event regarding career development in Greater China for law students and young lawyers, at Fordham Law School, 150 W 62nd Street. The panel speakers included Han Deng from Reed Smith, James Hang Jiang from Mayer Brown, Karen R. King from Paul Weiss, and Jian Wu, Co-Chair of the AABANY Asia Practice Committee. The panel shared their insights into legal career development in Greater China and the U.S. from a comparative perspective.
We thank Jian Wu for moderating and all the speakers for presenting this informative program. We thank all attendees for coming out for this program. We thank AABANY’s Asia Practice Committee and Student Outreach Committee for co-sponsoring this event. For more information about AABANY’s Asia Practice Committee, go to https://www.aabany.org/page/582. For more information about the Student Outreach Committee, go to https://www.aabany.org/page/121
Last week, St. John’s law students came together to engage with and learn from alumni at a panel program on Life After Law School: The Paths Ahead of You. Hosted by the Law School’s Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA) in collaboration with the Career Development Office, the event offered insight into a range of practice areas and work environments.
AABANY is happy to mention that the panelists included its members:
William Ng, Assistant Corporation Counsel, New York City Law Department (Board member and Co-Chair of the Young Lawyers and Communications Committees)
John Rogers, Partner, Herrick, Feinstein LLP (Co-Chair of the Corporate Law Committee)
Read the full article from the St. John’s Law website here.
