ONE LAWYER WAS PART OF A HIGH-PROFILE ANTITRUST CASE THAT WAS SELECTED AS ONE OF THE DAILY JOURNAL’S “TOP VERDICTS OF THE YEAR” IN 2011. THE LEGAL TEAM WAS ABLE TO CONVINCE A JURY TO RULE IN THEIR FAVOR, WHICH DROPPED A POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS CLAIM AMOUNTING TO $1.7 BILLION TO WHAT THE JURY DECIDED WAS VALUED AT $3.5 MILLION.
OTHER ATTORNEYS HAVE WON CASES ON BEHALF OF LOW-WAGE NAIL SALON WORKERS. ONE IS THE SECOND ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN ELECTED TO THE BENCH IN GEORGIA.
THEY HAVE ALL ACCOMPLISHED FEATS THAT PUT THEM AHEAD OF THEIR PEERS. THEY ARE COMMUNITY ORGANIZERS, JUDGES, GOVERNMENT ATTORNEYS, IN-HOUSE COUNSEL, LAW PROFESSORS, AND PARTNERS FROM BOTH SMALL AND LARGE FIRMS. THEY ARE THE NATIONAL ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION’S (NAPABA) 2012 CLASS OF “BEST LAWYERS UNDER 40” (BU40).
yers, judges, law professors, and law stu- dents, honored the 2012 BU40 class during its Anniversary Gala, the finale event of the 24th Annual NAPABA Convention, which featured a conversation with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Te NAPABA BU40 Award recognizes
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talented lawyers in the APA community who have achieved prominence and distinction in their respective fields at a relatively young age while also showing a deep commitment to community. Tis
HONORE ES ARE:
THE 2012 HON. AKEMI ARAKAKI,
LA County Superior Court, Central Juvenile District
STEVEN CHOI,
MinKwon Center for Community Action
JAMES DERRY, Arbitron Inc.
MARITA ETCUBAÑEZ, Asian American Justice Center
RIO M. GUERRERO, Guerrero Yee LLP
MARK HANASONO, LA County Alternate Public Defender
MELISSA S. HO, Polsinelli Shughart PC
PEGGY L. HO, LPL Financial
LABONI HOQ,
Asian Pacific American Legal Center
BLOSSOM KAN, MetLife, Inc.
NAHO KOBAYASHI, McGuireWoods LLP
NICOLE KUBISTA, Office of the Public
Defender, St. Paul, MN JASON LEUNG,
Ridout & Maybee LLP EDWARD LEW,
The Walt Disney Company
APABA, the only national bar associa- tion representing the interest of Asian Pacific American (APA) law-
year over 50 lawyers were nominated for the BU40 Award. Each candidate was carefully evaluated and interviewed by the selection committee. Unlike other similar awards, there is no set number of honorees each year—the selection process is based solely on the merit of each candidate, mak- ing the selection process highly competitive and rigorous.
MOVING MONUMENTS Diversity in the legal profession is still a concept that has yet to be fully real- ized. Although many corporations and law firms have shown a commitment to diversity efforts, according to a study by
TIRZAH ABE LOWE, Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear LLP
SAMUEL S. PARK, Winston & Strawn LLP
TEENA-ANN SANKOORIKAL, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
JEANNIE SUK,
Harvard Law School VINOO VARGHESE,
Varghese & Associates P.C. HON. CARLA WONG
McMillian, State Court of Fayette County, GA
CALVIN K. WOO,
McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2013 DIVERSITY & THE BAR® 25
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