On September 29th, 2026, AABANY’s Real Estate Committee welcomed attorneys, bankers, title professionals, brokers, and other real estate professionals and industry colleagues to M&T Bank in Midtown Manhattan for a special Fall Harvest Moon Festival Professional Networking Event.
The event brought together professionals from across the real estate, banking, and legal industries for an opportunity to meet new colleagues, build new relationships, reconnect with longtime friends, while celebrating the traditions of the Harvest Moon Festival.
And let it be known– there was absolutely no shortage of food to get the conversations going.
Upon entering, guests were greeted by tables filled with sweets, chocolates, and desserts, alongside an abundance of mooncakes to celebrate the Harvest Moon Festival. A table of beverages offered a variety of refreshments, while the main spread featured an array of sushi. The festive spread quickly turned into a gathering point as guests began mingling and getting to know one another.
Conversations sparked from every corner of the room. Bankers from M&T compared notes with attorneys on where their services could overlap, title professionals swapped perspectives with brokers and other members of the real estate industry, while business cards exchanged hands through the course of the evening.
Soon after, Margaret Ling offered remarks and thanks to all those in attendance. A longtime, active AABANY member and former Co-Chair of the Real Estate Committee, Margaret is deeply involved in the AAPI legal community and the city’s broader legal community. She spoke about the connections she has built over the years and about why events like this matter, especially when paired with a celebration like the Harvest Moon Festival.
She also shared with attendees what the holiday means. Celebrated when the moon is at its fullest, the festival, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, is a time for reunion, gratitude for the harvest, and abundance. Mooncakes, with their round shape symbolize togetherness, a fitting celebration for an evening focused on building and expanding community.
Margaret then invited AABANY’s current Real Estate Committee Co-Chairs, Jameson Xu and Jason Ganfer, to say a few words. Each thanked the guests for coming, spoke about the value of the relationships to come, and reflected on the meaning of the festival.
Then Margaret did something that truly brought the room together: she asked all 20+ attendees to go around the room, introduce themselves, and share what they do. It was a warm, slightly out-of-comfort zone icebreaker that melted away any shyness and gave everyone a sense of who to talk to next.
Guests returned to mingling with buzzing energy and, later, the evening came to a wonderful close.
The NAPABA President’s Award recognizes individuals and organizations that demonstrate an exceptional commitment to the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community. Selected annually by the NAPABA President, the award celebrates those whose leadership and service have made a meaningful impact on our community.
This year, NAPABA honors Wilson Chu and Sandra Yamate, two longtime leaders in the AANHPI legal community. Over the course of their careers, Wilson and Sandra have contributed their time and leadership to NAPABA and initiatives serving the legal profession and AANHPI community. Their decades of service reflect a longstanding commitment to supporting and uplifting others in the legal community.
NAPABA is honored to celebrate Wilson and Sandra and recognize their achievements at the 2026 NAPABA Convention in Los Angeles on Friday, November 13, at the President’s & Trailblazer Awards Reception.
Wilson Chu Senior Counsel, Dechert
Wilson Chu is a strategic advisor to boardrooms and C-suites, known for a collaborative, creative, business-minded approach to complex transactions and corporate governance. His practice is heavily weighted toward technology, especially superintelligence. Matters include advising Tesla’s Special Committee on Elon Musk’s trillion-dollar pay package, serving as Texas counsel on Amazon’s $13b acquisition of Whole Foods, and advising a 50% co-founder in Mailchimp’s $12b sale to Intuit.
He chaired the ABA M&A Committee (world’s largest), under which he created the game-changing Deal Points Studies and The MAC Cup national law student competition.
With his partner-in-crime, Don Liu, he co-founded many of NAPABA’s cornerstone initiatives, including the Best Under 40 Award, IHC and Partners Networks, and the 50×30 Initiative/Pipeline Program, as well as The Alliance for Asian American Justice (delivering over $10m in pro bono to victims of anti-Asian violence).
Sandra Yamate Chief Executive Officer, Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Profession
Sandra S. Yamate is the CEO of the Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Profession. She was a founder of both AABA-Chicago and NAPABA, where she was the first Central Region Governor and organized NAPABA’s first regional conference.
Currently, Sandra is the 99th President of the National Association of Women Lawyers (“NAWL”), the first Asian American in its 125+ year history. As President, she wrote/produced a video on the history and achievements of Asian American women lawyers, launched an Activation Summit in Honolulu, and spearheaded the renewed and expanded joint advocacy effort by the national affinity bars.
Sandra serves on the Board of the Chicago Bar Foundation and as DEI columnist for Chicago Lawyer magazine. By special appointment, she is a member of the New York City Bar Association’s DEI Committee. Sandra designed a law school course, “Diversity and Inclusion: A Social and Professional Responsibility” that was awarded the E. Smythe Gambrell Professionalism Award by the ABA Standing Committee on Professionalism.
On September 19, 2026, the Asian American Law Fund (AALFNY) and AABANY’s Pro Bono & Community Service (PBCS) Committee co-hosted a community outreach table at RaisingHealth’s 11th Annual Health Empowerment Celebration Event in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The event brought together community organizations and offered free health exams, hot meals, groceries, and other resources for local residents. RaisingHealth, formerly known as the Academy of Medical & Public Health Services, is a nonprofit health service organization founded in 2010 that supports underserved communities through culturally competent health, education, and community-building programs.
Community Outreach and Legal Resources
At the health fair, AABANY volunteers, including Kwok Ng, Co-Chair of the AABANY’s PBCS Committee, and May Wong, past Co-Chair of the PBCS Committee, along with Nandar Win Kerr, AALFNY’s Pro Bono and Grant Consultant, set up a table to pass out important resources, including:
Know-Your-Rights brochures on immigration law in Chinese and Spanish,
Throughout the fair, volunteers shared legal resources, flyers and Pro Bono Clinic promotional materials with more than 200 attendees. Volunteers also distributed Public Charge Guidance Info Sheets about the current changes to the public charge rule that took effect on September 18, 2026. A shout-out to the Asian American Federation (AAF), Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC) and Issues Committee (Co-Chairs Vishal Chander and Rachel Lee) for providing training, toolkits and resources that helped volunteers share accurate information with the community members in their native languages.
The Public Charge materials were provided by the New York Immigration Coalition and Asian American Federation. The materials are available in 13 Asian languages: Arabic, Bangla, Burmese, Khmer, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), Hindi, Japanese, Karen, Korean, Nepali, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
Community members seeking assistance can contact the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs’ hotline at (800) 354-0365 or by calling 311 or the New York State Office of New Americans Hotline at (800) 566-7636. For more information, please visit Public Charge Guidance Info Sheets.
Upcoming Pro Bono Clinics
October 7th – Queens: Interested volunteers should registerhere. 6:30 – 8:30pm, AAFE One Flushing Community Center, 133-29 41st Ave, 2nd Floor, Flushing, NY 11355
October 21st – Manhattan: Interested volunteers should registerhere. 6:30-8:30pm, AAFE Community Center, 111 Norfolk Street, NY, NY 10002
November 14th – Brooklyn: Interested volunteers should registerhere. 12:30 – 3:30pm, CPC Brooklyn Community Services, 4101 8th Avenue, 3rd Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11232
On June 24th, 2026, Glenn D. Magpantay, a Commissioner on the United States Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR), was honored at Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. ‘s Annual Pride Month Celebration at Queens Borough Hall. Glenn is the first openly LGBTQ and Asian American commissioner in the USCCR since its founding in 1957. Glenn is a longtime member and leader at AABANY and a current Board Director. Recently, we took this opportunity to meet with Glenn to interview him about his lifelong work as a civil rights attorney and an LGBTQ rights activist.
In a distinguished and storied career, Glenn has been recognized with a variety of awards, including NAPABA’s Daniel K. Inouye Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award and the AALAM Community Service Award. However, Glenn reflects that his award from BP Richards feels different because of the incredible support he has received from others in the local community. Being a Queens native—a borough bursting with diversity—Glenn has experienced firsthand how important diversity within communities is. For Glenn, the community recognition is what makes this honor deeply personal and truly special.
In his acceptance remarks, Glenn reflected on the difficulties of coming out as a gay man during the peak of the HIV epidemic. He extended deep gratitude to his family and supporters in both the LGBTQ and legal communities, noting that their unwavering support was vital during this challenging period of his life and the successes he achieved throughout his career. He also highlighted his impactful advocacy on the USCCR, including his efforts to ensure that the Commission acknowledges violence against transgender women of color. Glenn called upon those in attendance to persistently speak out and advocate for justice. As his remarks drew to a close, he extended his sincere thanks to the community for offering their continuous support throughout his journey.
“I would have never achieved all of this, were it not for so many of you who are here in the audience today. You all have supported me and have given me poise. You have lifted me up, even though I know I’m a little heavy,” he quipped. Click here to listen to Glenn’s speech.
Glenn is a Co-Founder of the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA), an organization that aims to create a world where queer and trans Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) people can flourish. Through this work, underrepresented communities continue to tackle ever-changing political and societal issues. Glenn claims that the changes the new administration implemented—the dismantling of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), and cutbacks on transgender healthcare and services for the poor—have affected millions of minority populations across the U.S., including AANHPI and LGBTQ communities.
Glenn credits affirmative action for his success as an LGBTQ Asian American. Following the government rollback of the policies supporting underrepresented communities, many feel the current legal and political landscape is stacked against them. Faced with these issues, Glenn shares how individuals and organizations can navigate this shifting landscape:
Vote in every election
Protest injustice
Engage with your community
Cultivate allies from those not in your communities
Be more open-minded to diverse perspectives
To achieve meaningful progress, according to Glenn, it is essential to transform hearts and minds. For many AANHPI and LGBTQ individuals, this transformation begins at home and involves finding a healthy balance between traditional expectations of family duty and the fundamental right to live authentically. Glenn observes a distinct tension between traditional, collectivist, and conformist Asian values and the emphasis on individualism in America, leading to the conflict that arises between parents and their second-generation children.
Glenn maintains that such cultural tenacity served as a way of survival for previous generations. It remains equally essential for navigating today’s challenges. While this cultural friction often causes painful divides, bridging these two worlds requires a slow, empathetic dialogue. “Coming out in Asian cultures is a process, not an event,” Glenn stated. “Parents have struggled and sacrificed for us. We should honor and respect them with patience.”
As a parent himself, Glenn states that his choices are guided by a desire to provide the very best for his child—similar to his own parents and many other Asian parents in America. American interactions are often transactional, while Asian interactions are deliberate and transformative—something AANHPI and LGBTQ youth must be mindful of while balancing their identities. “Unfortunately, everything that is beautiful and fulfilling in this world is a struggle to get to,” Glenn declared.
Teaching has also played a significant part in Glenn’s life. His teaching journey began when his friend, the late Professor Gary Okihiro, professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University, suggested that he teach, recognizing the unique insights the Commissioner had to share with students. Glenn chose to begin teaching as a personal mission to give back to the community with the ultimate goal of showing that students from underserved communities can also become accomplished lawyers. Many of them—first–generation immigrants or poor—have never met a brown gay attorney before. They thought that all the successful lawyers were white, male, and Jewish.
He hopes that he can help his students find a potential greater than they have ever imagined for themselves. The mentor and mentee relationships that teaching has enabled him to form motivate him to continue. He imparts his personal knowledge while the students keep him updated on current social media lingo, allowing them to form meaningful and relevant connections. Although Glenn no longer teaches, he hopes to return to the classroom sometime in the future. He is beloved and admired by his students, as his “Rate My Professor” reviews show.
Ultimately, Glenn intends to continue leveraging his role in the USCCR and his position as an LGBTQ and Asian American civil rights pioneer to help underrepresented communities achieve their fullest potential.
Please join AABANY in congratulating Glenn on his most recent recognition from Queens BP Richards during the Annual Pride Month Celebration in June.
Kick Off Your Convention Experience with NAPABA Specialty Programs!
The Convention Thursday Specialty Programs are intentionally designed to create dedicated spaces for attendees with shared identities, career stages, or professional interests. These programs offer a more intimate, focused environment where you can build meaningful relationships, exchange experiences, and strengthen your network within NAPABA’s community. This year’s Specialty Programs are:
Women’s Leadership Workshop
International Law Symposium
Public Service Network Workshop
Solo & Small Firm Boot Camp
Young Lawyers Workshop
CLE Information: All Thursday Specialty Programs except for the Young Lawyers Workshop are eligible for continuing legal education.
Registration Information:
Thursday Specialty Programs are included in Convention Registration.
One-day registration is available for anyone interested in attending only the Thursday Programming.
The Thursday Specialty Programs is just the beginning of Thursday’s activities. The NAPABA Village, our reimagined exhibit hall opens at 11 am. After an afternoon of learning and exploring the village, join us at the NAPABA Welcome Reception and Best Under 40s Awards Celebration. Our welcome reception is followed by NAPABA Committee and Network receptions.
Your membership pays for itself. Members save up to $675 on Convention registration, receive early access to registration and the hotel block, and unlock exclusive year-round professional development, leadership, and networking opportunities. Join or renew now.
Become a NAPABA member and enjoy savings that go beyond the cost of membership!
On May 29th, 2026, the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) joined the Safe Horizon AAPI Affinity Group in New York for a screening of the “Voices Against Anti-Asian Hate” documentary. The documentary produced by AABANY and AALFNY (Asian American Law Fund of NY) shares the experiences of survivors and families affected by the rise in anti-Asian violence in New York during the Covid-19 pandemic and highlights the legal and community response that followed.
The Safe Horizon AAPI Affinity Group welcomed a gathering of colleagues in office and also over Zoom and emphasized the importance of allyship and community in increasingly uncertain times. The in-person contingent held a Kimbap making activity that accompanied the documentary screening, highlighting the importance of cultural celebration along with education.
The film featured deeply personal stories from Justin Go, father of Michelle Go; Sungkon Lee, father of Christina Yuna Lee; and Noel Quintana, a survivor of a violent subway slashing to his face. Their accounts highlighted the lasting impact of anti-Asian violence, the challenges victims face in seeking recognition and support, and the critical role of culturally sensitive pro bono legal advocacy.
Following the documentary screening, Safe Horizon AAPI Affinity Group Co-Chair Audrey Williams facilitated a discussion with Rachel Lee, President & General Counsel of Stand with Asian Americans and a member of AABANY’s Board and Anti-Asian Violence Task Force. The Q&A covered a diverse series of topics, ranging from the Task Force’s work to broader questions touching upon what is at the root of anti-Asian hate. Moreover, in reflecting on Safe Horizon’s role as a victim services nonprofit, Audrey and Rachel discussed the particular application of hate-crime definitions and culturally responsive care. Audrey and Rachel also responded to questions and comments from the group that joined virtually.
We thank the attendees who joined us in-person and virtually to attend the screening and provided their attention and deeply insightful comments. We are also grateful to the AAPI Affinity Group at Safe Horizon for hosting such a wonderful event, which incorporated both joy and serious discussion in an effort to give a platform to the survivors and families of Anti-Asian violence.
If anyone is interested in hosting their own screening of this documentary, contact Daphne Mei, Program Manager of the AABANY Anti-Asian Violence Task Force, at [email protected]. To contact the Task Force, email [email protected].
–Written by Kate Mao, for the AABANY Anti-Asian Violence Task Force
In celebration of AAPI Heritage Month this year, AABANY is presenting or co-sponsoring several events this month. We hope to see you all there! Follow the links for more details, and please note the registration deadlines. This blog post will be updated throughout the month, as new events get added on, so check back for any updates.
May 2, 2026
AABANY Co-Sponsors: Korean Hat Day at Yankee Stadium
1:35pm – Yankees Stadium, 1 E. 161 E. 161st Street
This event has already occurred.
May 3, 2026
AABANY Sunday Run Day
11:00 am – Start at Bedford Ave (L); End at Canal St. & Chrystie St. This event is preparation for the May 23 AAPI 5k run.
This event has already occurred.
May 5-7, 2026
Asian Comedy Fest 2026: AABANY Discount Available
7pm and 9pm – Sugar Mouse NYC, 47 3rd Avenue, Lower Level, New York, NY 10003
This event has already occurred.
May 6, 2026
AABANY Co-Sponsors: Power in Unity: Strengthening Communities Together
1:00 pm – Kings County Supreme Court, Criminal Term, Courtroom 2.95, 320 Jay Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201
This event has already occurred.
May 6, 2026
AABANY Co-Sponsors: Beginner’s Mahjong
6:00pm – Sparrow’s Nest Studio, 35 W. 35th Street, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10018
This event has already occurred.
May 6, 2026
AABANY Presents: Dumplings & Discussion Series Featuring Judge Pamela K. Chen
6:00pm -Midtown location – to be emailed to registrants.
This event has already occurred.
May 9, 2026
AABANY Bi-Monthly Brooklyn Pro Bono Legal Clinic
12:30 pm – 2:30 pm – CPC Brooklyn Community Services, 4101 8th Ave, Brooklyn, New York 11232
This event has already occurred.
May 10, 2026
AABANY Sunday Run Day
11:00 am – Start at Bedford Ave (L); End at Canal St. & Chrystie St. This event is preparation for the May 23 AAPI 5k run.
This event has already occurred.
May 12, 2026
AABANY Co-Sponsors: Reflections of Unity and Strength in our AANHPI Communities
12:30pm – Queens Supreme Court – Civil Term, 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Ceremonial Courtroom 25, Jamaica, New York 11435
This event has already occurred.
May 16, 2026
AABANY Presents: 3rd Annual Wellness Retreat
10:00 am – 5:00 pm – Blue Cliff Monastery, 3 Mindfulness Rd, Pine Bush, New York 12566
This event has already occurred.
May 16, 2026
AABANY Co-Sponsors: Asian Americans and the Law, Featuring Hon. Denny Chin
2pm – White Plains Public Library, 100 Martine Avenue, White Plains, New York 10601
On February 18, 2026, at the Governor’s Lunar New Year celebration in Manhattan Chinatown, Justice Lillian Wan received a Special Citation from Governor Kathy Hochul. This recognition commemorates Justice Wan’s work in serving fellow New Yorkers with distinction and upholding the highest standards of excellence in public service. Justice Wan expressed deep gratitude for receiving the Special Citation from Governor Hochul, made all the more meaningful by being honored alongside Asian American Federation (AAF) CEO Catherine Chen and Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) Co-Executive Director Vanessa Leung, two leaders whose contributions to the Asian-American community have been noteworthy and impactful.
In 2022, Governor Hochul appointed Justice Wan to the Appellate Division, Second Department, making her the first Asian American woman to sit in the Appellate Division in New York State. Despite achieving this milestone in the New York State courts, Justice Wan’s path to the bench was not one she originally envisioned for herself. As a practicing attorney, she never appeared before a judge who looked like her, so she never considered it a possibility. That changed when she began working closely with Surrogate Judge Margarita López Torres, the first Latina Surrogate Judge in New York State. Judge López Torres became her mentor and encouraged her to apply for a mayoral appointment to the family court bench, where her experience was strongest, and that the City of New York would benefit from having her as a judge. “She saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself,” Justice Wan reflected.
Since being appointed to the bench in 2012, Justice Wan has witnessed a remarkable shift in representation. When she started, Asian American judges across New York State made up under 2% of the judiciary. Today, that number has grown to about 5% of the approximately 1,300 sitting New York state judges.
Governor Hochul, who awarded Justice Wan the special recognition, has played a meaningful role in that progress. Since taking office in August 2021, the Governor has appointed nine Asian American judges, six of whom have been appointed to the New York State Court of Claims, a higher number than any Governor in the State’s history. She has also appointed three Asian American judges to the Appellate Division, the mid-level appellate court in New York State. Justice Wan was appointed to the Appellate Division, Second Department in May 2022. Justice Philip Hom was appointed in 2024. Most recently, Justice Margaret Chan was appointed to the Appellate Division, First Department. Justice Wan, Justice Hom, and Justice Chan are all members of the Asian American Bar Association of New York.
Justice Wan’s own path was shaped not only by Judge López Torres but also by the Honorable Randall T. Eng, former Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division, Second Department, and now practicing attorney who holds a truly historic distinction: he was the first Asian American judge in the entire state of New York, appointed to the Criminal Court by Mayor Ed Koch in 1983. Justice Eng mentored Justice Wan early in her career and instilled in her a philosophy she carries to this day: visibility matters. Your job is essential, but you need to do more. Asian American attorneys and judges must be active in bar associations, judicial organizations, their law schools, their universities, and their communities. They should embrace leadership roles and ensure people know who they are.
Justice Wan has made it her personal mission to be for others what Judge López Torres and Justice Eng were for her. She remains accessible, attends various events to stay visible, and holds leadership positions in organizations that uplift the Asian-American legal community. As a mentor, Justice Wan sees talented attorneys routinely talking themselves out of applying for judicial positions, convinced that others are more qualified, that they haven’t been around long enough, or that it simply isn’t their turn. Her advice to students and legal professionals who want to follow her footsteps is direct: apply anyway. Often, the only difference between the person who gets the position and the person who doesn’t is that the latter didn’t second-guess themselves.
Besides individual efforts, Justice Wan points to the power of community organizations in building a stronger pipeline. The Asian American Bar Association of New York runs a robust Judiciary Committee that vets judicial candidates, provides letters of endorsement, conducts mock interviews, and hosts educational programs about the path to becoming a judge. The Asian American Judges Association of New York, of which Justice Wan is a past president and current board member, works to support judges and grow their numbers. The organization is open to everyone, not just Asian American judges, and its mission is rooted in the belief that a bench that reflects the full population it serves is stronger and more just.
The Special Citation from Governor Hochul captures both the breadth of Justice Wan’s career and the philosophy that has defined it, recognizing her historic appointment to the Appellate Division, Second Department, alongside her leadership in the organizations that uplift Asian American attorneys, women in law, and the broader legal community. It is a recognition that spans decades of work, from her earliest years on the bench to the mentorship and visibility efforts she continues today. Justice Wan has spent her career being the judge she did not see when she was a young attorney, and in doing so, has made sure that fewer people will have to wonder whether someone like them belongs on the bench.
Please join AABANY in congratulating Justice Wan on receiving this recognition from Governor Hochul.
On March 18, 2026, AABANY’s Corporate Law Committee hosted their Spring Social event at Blue Blossom near Bryant Park. This event brought together a vibrant group of legal professionals for an evening of connection and celebration. During the evening, AABANY members and friends gathered for lively conversation, delicious food, and yummy cocktails. The popular event was so successful that at times the second floor room was packed with attendees. Conversations flowed easily at this networking event, where many corporate attorneys relaxed over a delicious menu of dumplings, noodles, and lobster. Whether catching up with familiar faces or forging new professional relationships, attendees left the evening energized and inspired.
The Corporate Law Committee remains deeply committed to fostering a strong and supportive sense of community among corporate law attorneys in the New York Tri-State area throughout the year. Through thoughtfully curated events like this one, professional development opportunities, and meaningful engagement, the Committee strives to create spaces where members can thrive both personally and professionally. This Committee is spearheaded by Co-Chairs John Hwang from Linklaters, Tracy Feng from Paul Hastings, and Keli Huang from Kirkland & Ellis, along with Vice-Chairs Kyle Zhu from Orrick and Ashley Wong from Amazon. Their dedication and leadership continue to elevate the Committee’s impact across the AABANY community.
The Corporate Law Committee extends its gratitude to the generous sponsors, Datasite and PNC Bank, for making this event a success.
– Written by Ashley Wong, AABANY Corporate Law Committee Vice-Chair
On Wednesday, February 25, 2026, AABANY’s Trusts & Estates Committee gathered to celebrate the Year of the Horse with a festive dinner in Midtown Manhattan. Held at Tang Pavilion, the evening brought together 18 attendees for a lively night of yummy food and community-building.
As guests arrived, they were directed to a separate private room reserved for the Committee, creating an intimate setting for the celebration. Co-Chair Natasha Chang thoughtfully ordered a wide-ranging selection of dishes for everyone to share, ensuring the table was filled with a delectable and generous spread. The meal began with scallion pancakes, cucumber salad, and frosted peanuts, followed by familiar favorites including Orange Chicken, Shredded Beef with Small Hot Peppers, Assorted Noodles, Beef Noodle Soup, Sweet & Sour Pork Ribs, Boneless Chicken Feet, and Smoked Fish. The steady arrival of dishes encouraged camaraderie as attendees around the table’s central lazy susan spun the glass turntable to share each dish and sample a bit of everything.
Beyond the delicious food, the dinner served as a valuable networking opportunity. Attendees went around the table introducing themselves and sharing their practice areas and career paths. The conversation evolved into a thoughtful reflection on the attendees’ respective law journeys. Many shared what they might have done differently, including whether taking one or more gap years before law school or gaining more practical experience earlier on. Some also talked about how the practice of law is changing with new technologies like AI and how future lawyers will need to adapt to these shifts.
Adding to the festive spirit, attendee Julie Min Chayet from Fiduciary Trust International passed around traditional red envelopes to all of the attendees. Inside were $2 bills and chocolate gold coins representing prosperity and good fortune for the year ahead. The thoughtful gesture sparked smiles and appreciation around the tables.
As we move forward into the Year of the Horse, AABANY’s Trusts & Estates Committee looks ahead with enthusiasm and renewed energy for the year’s programming and initiatives. Thank you to everyone who joined us for an evening of celebration and camaraderie.
