Thank you to our outgoing board and members for a great two years. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic through much of the prior term, AALASC was still able to offer some great virtual and in-person programs and events (events from the past year are highlighted below) and continued and led great initiatives. The AALASC continued its partnership with California ChangeLawyers and has continued to provide scholarships each year to a noteworthy law student in our community taking the bar exam. We continued our alliances with other bar organizations in California, including supporting joint initiatives and co-hosting events. Along with other bar organizations, we formed and are now part of the OC Unity Bar, an endeavor led by Mena Guirguis.
We have also continued our initiative to get more Arab American representation in the legal community and the judiciary. Judge Raphael who joined our Board this term has been a great contributor to the legal community, and we look forward to more Arab Americans on the bench.One of the significant initiatives this term, was continuing to raise awareness about the lack of designation in many federal and state systems regarding the Middle Eastern or North African (“MENA”) identity designation. Generally, those who identify as MENA have never had this option available to them under the U.S. Census, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. However, it is wonderful news that this may change in the near future. At the federal level, in a Federal Register notice published in late January 2023, the Federal Interagency Technical Working Group on Race and Ethnicity Standards recommended adding the MENA identifier as a new category. At the local level in California, AALASC, along with support from many other organizations, has requested the inclusion of MENA as a separate identity, in the California judicial application process. The outgoing Board has been instrumental in spearheading this process, and we would like to thank the more than 40 organizations for supporting this initiative. You can find a link to AALASC’s letter here.
Highlights from Past Year’s Events:
December 8, 2022: Led by Jehan Pernas, we co-sponsored a “Meet and Greet with United States Attorney Martin Estrada” along with a number of other partner bar organizations. This was a great opportunity to hear directly from U.S. Attorney Estrada and other Assistant United States Attorneys in the Central District of California, who discussed the important work their office does.
December 1, 2022: We had our Holiday Mixer at the Lobby Lounge in the Intercontinental Hotel in DTLA. The first hour of drinks was generously sponsored by the Law Offices of Mann & Elias, which may have explained the great turnout!
September 8, 2022: We sponsored a “Meet and Greet with California Attorney General Rob Bonta.” Imad Elias was instrumental in spearheading this event, and Rudy Salo, our incoming president, hosted the event, and his firm, Nixon Peabody LLP, sponsored it. The event was well attended, and a great opportunity to meet Attorney General Bonta, and hear from him about the importance of recognizing the Arab American Community. Attorney General Bonta tweeted about the event afterwards, and said that “As AG, it is my highest privilege to stand with you, to represent, protect, and uplift our state’s diverse communities—including the more than 800K Arab Americans here in California.” Tweet.
August 18, 2022: Along with several other organizations, we co-sponsored the Multicultural Bar Alliance’s Summer Reception at the Bonaventure Brewing Company in Downtown Los Angeles.
July 21, 2022: We had a fun joint mixer with LACBA’s Barristers/Young Attorneys Section in Santa Monica. Fisher Phillips sponsored the mixer.
June 16, 2022: We put on a webinar regarding “Ethical Duties and Electronically Stored Information,” which provided MCLE credit for any members who could attend.
June 8, 2022: We had an informative panel discussion on “Pathways to the Bench: Demystifying the Judicial Application Process” which was moderated by Rasha Gerges Shields (Jones Day LLP), and Nour Hamida (Ellis George Cipollone O’Brien Annaguey LLP), a newly elected board member. Our esteemed panelists included the Honorable Tony Raphael, Honorable Halima Dhanidina (Ret.), Honorable Kevin Rosenberg, and Assistant United States Attorney Reema El-Amamy, who discussed various pathways to the bench, and the nuts and bolts of the judicial application process.
May 25, 2022: We had a wonderful Spring Mixer at The Bar at Fairmont Century Plaza in Century City.
Looking forward to continuing our progression and initiatives with the incoming AALASC Board.