On Monday, July 28, AABANY’s Intellectual Property Committee gathered for its monthly dinner, this time over a flavorful Korean meal at Ziggle Tofu & Grill. Located in the heart of Manhattan, the restaurant offered a cozy space for members to unwind, connect, and enjoy a variety of Korean comfort dishes.
The table quickly filled with bubbling tofu stews, sizzling BBQ platters, and side dishes passed around family-style. With food at the center, conversations flowed easily—from recent developments in AI and IP law to summer travel plans.
These monthly dinners have become a highlight for the Committee, offering a relaxed setting to build community outside of the typical networking events and panel discussions. For newer members and first-time attendees, it was a great way to get involved and meet others with shared interests.
If you’re interested in future dinners, keep an eye on the AABANY calendar for upcoming events. To learn more about this committee, visit the IP Committee subpage on the AABANY website.
On Monday, May 12, 2025, the AABANY Intellectual Property Committee hosted its monthly dinner, this time at Rasa, a Malaysian restaurant located in Greenwich Village. Members and guests gathered to enjoy an evening of flavorful food and engaging conversation.
The dinner provided a relaxed and friendly setting for attendees to connect with others who share an interest in intellectual property law. Participants ranged from seasoned IP practitioners to law students and newcomers to the legal field. The event was open to both AABANY members and non-members, and several first-time attendees joined the group—bringing new energy and fresh perspectives to the table.
Over plates of satay, roti, and nasi lemak, conversations covered recent developments in IP law, career paths in the field, and opportunities for collaboration within the AABANY community. The dinner also offered a great chance for committee members to catch up and welcome new faces into the fold.
Thank you to everyone who attended and helped make the evening a success! The IP Committee looks forward to hosting more dinners and events in the coming months. New members are always welcome—bring a friend and join us next time!
To learn more about the IP Committee and how you can participate, visit the IP Committee’s page on the AABANY website.
On March 20, 2019, our Membership Committee held its last Monthly Membership Happy Hour of the fiscal year at Karaoke City in Midtown Manhattan. A crowd of AABANY members and future members gathered to meet and mingle over drinks, delicious Korean food, and karaoke.
Both Brian Song, President-Elect, and Yang Chen, Executive Director, gave a shout out to David Sohn, Membership Director and Membership Committee Chair, for all his hard work in putting together the Monthly Membership Happy Hours as a unique way to let prospective members learn about AABANY.
We thank the Litigation Committee and the Military and Veterans Affairs Committee for co-hosting this successful happy hour, with more than 30 attendees. If you are not already a member, we hope your attendance brings you closer to becoming a member or renewing your membership. And thanks to all the members who came out.
January’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic, held on Wednesday, January 9 at 3 Bowery Street in Confucius Plaza, brought out 16 lawyers and 6 interpreters who volunteered their time to help 34 clients.
We are asking every member to actively support AABANY’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic by making donations that are vital to its continuing operation. In a few short years, with the tireless and generous assistance of our volunteers, we have helped hundreds of low-income clients with free legal advice and referrals to high-quality, culturally sensitive, and linguistically competent legal services. Together we have helped expand access to justice for underserved Asian American New Yorkers.
If
you know family members, friends, or businesses, such as your firm, who
would like to support the Clinic, please help us connect with them by
contacting Karen Yau at karen.yau@aabany.org.
Or
please urge them to make a donation directly. They can visit the
website of Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY), AABANY’s
501(c)(3) affiliate: https://www.asianamericanlawfund.org/donate/
AALFNY is accepting charitable donations on the Clinic’s behalf and
can issue any donor a tax receipt. Any contribution, large or small,
would help. Please be sure to indicate in the memo field that the
donation is intended for the Pro Bono Clinic.
Thank you to all of the January Pro Bono Clinic Volunteers!
Lawyers:
Gaye L. Chun
Jennie Kim
Eun Hye (Grace) Lee
Kwok Kei Ng
Thomas Hou
Francis Chin
Alexandra Lee
Poonam Gupta
Amanda Bernardo
Susan Thorn
Zhixian Liu
Suehyan Cho-O’Leary
David Lu
Pauline Yeung-Ha
Karen Kithan Yau
Judy (Ming Chu) Lee
Interpreters:
Alva Lin
Weiling Huang
Derek Ting-Che Tai
Teresa Wai Yee Yeung
Satoshi Kurita
Wenxin Natalie Lu
Special thanks to Johnny Thach for coordinating the clinic, and the Pro Bono and Community Service Committee Co-Chairs Karen Kithan Yau, Ming Chu Lee, and Asako Aiba for their leadership.
If you are interested in volunteering at next month’s Pro Bono Clinic on February 13, please contact Asako Aiba at asako.aiba@aabany.org. AABANY’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic occurs every second Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:30 PM.
November’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic, held on Wednesday, November 14 at 3 Bowery Street in Confucius Plaza, brought out 13 lawyers and 9 interpreters who volunteered their time to help 29 clients:
Lawyers:
Christopher Chin
Sylvia Chin
Gaye L. Chun
Kelly Diep
Jonathan Hernandez
Mihea Kim
Beatrice Leong
Zhixian Liu
David Lu
Kwok Kei Ng
Annie Tsao
John Wu
Jessie Xian
Interpreters:
Satoshi Kurita
Derek Ting-Che Tai
Weiling Huang
Emily Xianxiao Li
Haoyi Deng
Vicky Qiuyan Zhao
Jessica Wang
Teresa Wai Yee Yeung
Eric W. Dang
Special thanks to Johnny Thach and Roger Chen for coordinating the clinic, Social Worker Ann Hsu, and the Pro Bono and Community Service Committee Co-Chairs Karen Kithan Yau, Ming Chu Lee, and Asako Aiba for their leadership.
If you are interested in volunteering at next month’s Pro Bono Clinic on December 12, please contact Asako Aiba at asako.aiba@aabany.org. AABANY’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic occurs every second Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:30 PM.
October’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic, held on Wednesday, October 10 at 3 Bowery Street in Confucius Plaza, brought out 17 lawyers and 6 interpreters who volunteered their time to help 51 clients:
Lawyers:
Zhixian Liu
Wei Li
Sylvia Chin
Sonya Chung
Rachel Yoo
May Kay Wong
Lord Chester So
Kwok Kei Ng
Kevin Hsi
Kelly Diep
Francis Chin
David Lu
Conlyn Chan
Christopher Chin
Chris M. Kwok
Annie Tsao
Jiayun Zhang
Interpreters:
Alva Lin
Xianxiao (Emily) Li
Wen Zhang
Wei Ling Huang
Rachel Chen
Emily Li
Special thanks to Roger Chen and Johnny Thach for coordinating the clinic, and the Pro Bono and Community Service Committee Co-Chairs Pauline Yeung, Karen Kithan Yau, Ming Chu Lee, and Asako Aiba for their leadership.
If you are interested in volunteering at next month’s Pro Bono Clinic on November 14, please contact Asako Aiba at asako.aiba@aabany.org. AABANY’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic occurs every second Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:30 PM.
