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October 2008Asian Bar Association of Washington to Host NAPABA Conventionby Thuy Nguyen-Leeper and Jin H. Kim Who Are NAPABA and ABAW? NAPABA is the National Asian Pacific American Bar Assocation. NAPABA provides a national network for its Asian Pacific American (APA) members, affiliates, and advocates for the legal needs and interests of the APA community. Since its inception in 1988, NAPABA has been at the forefront of national and local activities in the areas of civil rights, combating anti-immigrant backlash and hate crimes, increasing the diversity of the federal and state judiciaries, and professional development. NAPABA monitors legislative developments and judicial appointments, promotes APA political leadership, advocates for equal opportunity in education and the workplace, works to eliminate violence against APAs, and builds coalitions within the legal profession and the community at large. NAPABA also serves as a resource for federal, state, and local agencies; members of Congress and staff; and public-service organizations on the APA legal profession, civil rights, and diversity in the courts. Seattle attorney Emilia “Mimi” Castillo remembers NAPABA’s first meeting where 20 attorneys gathered to draft NAPABA’s articles of incorporation and bylaws. “We were dead set on finishing the bylaws before anyone could leave,” Castillo recalls. What started from a small group of attorneys over 20 years ago has now grown to approximately 55 APA affiliates nationwide, and more than 40,000 attorneys, with practice settings ranging from solo practices to large firms, corporations, legal services organizations, nonprofit organizations, law schools, and governmental agencies. The Asian Bar Association of Washington (ABAW) fosters the exchange of ideas and information among and between its members and other members of the legal profession, the judiciary, and the community. The organization encourages and promotes the personal and professional growth of its members. ABAW members not only volunteer each week to provide free legal services to the APA community, but also volunteer to improve neighborhoods. ABAW celebrated its 20th year in 2007 and has grown to include 350 members. Seattle Will Host More Than 1,200 Asian Pacific American Lawyers at the 2008 NAPABA Conference The Asian Bar Association of Washington is excited to host the 20th Annual National Asian Pacific American Bar Association Convention in Seattle, November 19–23, 2008. More than 1,200 legal professionals and guests from around the country are expected to attend the 2008 convention, the theme of which is “Building on Our Legacy: 20 Years of NAPABA.” NAPABA’s Return to Seattle This year’s convention will mark NAPABA’s first return to Seattle since the ABAW hosted the convention in 1991. Mimi Castillo, who co-chaired the 1991 Planning Committee, remarks: “It will be fun and exciting to see everyone in Seattle again and to see all the new faces that weren’t here 17 years ago. What a great location for an event where you see old friends and familiar faces and get to network with new young lawyers and students.” 1997 Trailblazer Award recipient King County District Court Judge Eileen Kato remarked: “This annual reunion brings a true sense of belonging to the attendees — to meet and to cultivate friendships with so many Asian-American attorneys. At its inception in 1988, many of us saw very few, if any, Asian-Americans in our day-to-day practices in any capacity, whether in the courtroom or at our law firms. Such a strong bond developed in the early stages, which continues to this day, to focus on mentoring, helping, and encouraging the young Asian-American attorneys to learn the ropes in the legal profession and to succeed. Over the years, I have witnessed the growth and maturing of this organization, and I am honored and proud to have been a part of its history.” Convention Highlights The three-day NAPABA convention will celebrate the accomplishments of APA leaders in the legal profession and the many advances made by the APA community over the past 20 years. Keynote Address and Plenary Sessions This year’s keynote speaker at the 20th Anniversary Gala Celebration Dinner will be Major General Antonio M. Taguba, a retired major general in the United States Army who was the second and latest Filipino-American to attain general officer rank in the United States Army. Taguba authored a powerful 2004 investigative report about abuses of Iraqi detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison. His detailed findings shook the Pentagon and White House and led to many changes in the treatment of Iraqi prisoners. General Taguba retired in early 2007 after a 34-year Army career. In addition to the keynote address, there will be several plenary sessions, the first of which will be a retrospective look at ¬NAPABA: “Moving Forward by Looking Back at 20 Years of NAPABA.” Other plenary sessions include an address by Brad Smith, senior vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary at Microsoft, and “A Conversation with the Federal Judges.” Trailblazer Awards Each year, NAPABA recognizes the outstanding achievements, commitment, and leadership of NAPABA lawyers who have paved the way for the advancement of other APA attorneys with its Trailblazer Awards. The honorees are leaders who have demonstrated vision, courage, and tenacity in their careers, making substantial and lasting contributions to both the APA legal community and the broader APA community. “It is so uplifting to hear their stories and to see how young lawyers grow up and excel so quickly,” Mimi Castillo said. “Seattle in particular should be very proud, because we have had so many prominent Asian attorneys and judges recognized by the Trailblazer Award.” One of this year’s honorees will be Seattle attorney Nelson Dong, a partner in Dorsey and Whitney’s Corporate Group, and co-chair of the Licensing and Technology Commerce Practice and Asian Law Practice. He was the co-founder and first secretary of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area, the seminal APA bar association in the nation on which ABAW itself and all the other local affiliate bar associations of NAPABA were later modeled. The first Asian-American partner in three different law firms in California and Minnesota, Nelson was also the first Asian-American to be elected president of the Washington State China Relations Council, the nation’s pre-eminent state trade promotion group for China. Thomas Tang Competition The annual NAPABA Convention is also marked by the final rounds of the Thomas Tang National Moot Court Competition. The Competition honors the late Judge Thomas Tang, a former Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals judge who served from 1977 to 1995, and a champion of individual rights, an advocate for the advancement of minority attorneys, and an ardent supporter of NAPABA and the moot court competition. The Thomas Tang National Moot Court Competition is open to all law students, but is especially designed to reach out to APA law students and provide them with an opportunity to showcase their writing and oral advocacy skills and compete for scholarships totaling $10,000. CLE Opportunities This year’s conference will include a wide variety of CLE opportunities, divided into tracks on litigation, corporate transactional, public interest and civil rights, and career development. Selected topics will include: Showcasing Seattle to National Lawyers NAPABA President-elect Andy Hahn stated: “Having the convention in Seattle will be an exciting opportunity not only to showcase the contributions NAPABA and its members have made across our great nation, but to bring together all of NAPABA’s affiliates in a setting of rare natural beauty where commitment to diverse cultures and pursuit of freedom, justice, and equality are alive and well.” Jill Otake, ABAW co-president, remarked: “We are thrilled to host the 2008 NAPABA Conference in Seattle. The Asian Bar Association of Washington, our sister Asian bar associations, and the Asian legal community here have grown enormously since we last hosted the NAPABA conference in 1991.” Andy Ko, ABAW co-president, added: “We’re looking forward to sharing with our colleagues from around the country the natural beauty of Washington and to showing our colleagues here the strength of the Asian legal community nationally.” Contact Information For general information about the 20th Annual NAPABA convention, visit www.napaba.org/napaba/showpage.asp?code=convention. For more information about sponsorship opportunities, contact Andrew T. Hahn, NAPABA president-elect, at ahahn@seyfarth.com.
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