BU Law APALSA

3rd Annual Asian Pacific American Alumni Conference

2012-02-04T13:34:00.028-05:00

BU APALSA cordially invites you to the 3rd Annual APA Alumni Conference to be held on Saturday, March 3, 2012 at the BU Law Tower.

The theme of this year's conference is “Breaking Barriers and Overcoming Obstacles in the 21st Century.” This conference will feature trailblazing individuals who have made an impact in the community at large – including those who are considered first in their field where Asians Pacific Americans are traditionally underrepresented, who have taken unconventional career paths, and who have opened new doors of social change and progress.

APALSA has successfully hosted this conference for the past two years, and past speakers have included in-house counsel, a former judge from Japan, a former UN Associate Eligibility Officer in Syria, among many other distinguished BU Law alumni. The Conference is first and foremost an exciting opportunity for alumni – old and new – to connect with students and other alumni, to discuss many important Asian Pacific American issues within the legal profession as well as the world at large.

With more than thirty alumni, sixty students, and six of BU law’s largest diversity organizations participating, the APA Alumni Conference is APALSA’s most prominent event of the year.

Attorneys and alumni registration may be completed here.

Student registration may be completed here.

--

Below is a tentative conference schedule:

11:30 – 12:00 Registration

12:00 - 1:30 Welcome Reception & Lunch
remarks by Dean Maureen A. O'Rourke

1:30 – 2:00 Keynote Address
Myron Dean Quon
BU Law Class of '93

2:15 – 3:30 Panel Session A

Panel A1: First Steps into Legal Careers
moderated by Professor Robert Volk
BU Law Class of '78

Panel A2: Transitions

3:30 – 3:50 Coffee & Mingling

3:50 – 4:30 Speed Mentoring

4:30 – 5:45 Panel Session B

Panel B1: Many Faces of Government Positions
moderated by Maura Kelly, Esq., Assistant Dean for Career Development & Public Service

Panel B2: International Practice: Opportunities for U.S. Lawyers
moderated by Professor Frederick Tung, Howard Zhang Faculty Research Scholar, BU Law
Harvard Law School Class of '87

6:00 – 8:00 Dinner Reception & Closing Remarks

-- Select speakers this year include:

Judge John T. "Jack" Lu
Associate Justice, Massachusetts Superior Court
BU Law Class of '84

Deborah Lau Kee
Associate Deputy Chief Legal Counsel, Massachusetts Port Authority
BU Law Class of '77

Commissioner Geoffrey Why
Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications & Cable
Boston College Law School Class of '98

Young Paik
Assistant U.S. Attorney, Ortiz's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Unit
University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill School of Law

Alan Chang
Associate Deputy General, VP Legal Affairs for NY Yankees
BU Law Class of '92

Willis G. Wang
Vice President & Associate Provost for Global Programs, Deputy General Counsel, Boston University
Boston College Law School Class of '91

Ku Yoo
Partner, Chang & Yoo LLP
BU Law Tax LL.M. Program
Case Western Reserve University School of Law Class of '07

Dinesh K. Melwani
Associate, Corporate Practice & Japan Practice, Bingham McCutchen LLP
McGill University Faculty of Law, Bachelors of Law and Civil Laws Class of '04

Catherine Mannick
General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer, AcadiaSoft, Inc.
former Co-Chair, Russian Practice Group, Hale and Dorr LLP
Harvard Law School Class of '82

Carson G. Burnham
Shareholder, International Practice Group, Ogletree Deakins
former Vice President, Global Employment Law, Nowell, Inc.
University of Pennsylvania Law School Class of '98

... and many other distinguished guests

For questions and comments, please contact BU APALSA.

2011-2012 Events So Far... in Pictures

2012-02-03T13:38:00.009-05:00

APALSA Annual Meet the Firms
February 2, 2012

APALSA / BLSA Back to School Lunar New Years Event
MIT Lion Dance Troupe
Soul Food & Seoul Food
January 25, 2012

2011 Annual Reunion Alumni Gala Dinner with
Silver Single Award Recipient
Major General Stephen Tom (BUSL '74)
October 29, 2011

Mentorship Program Kick-Off Dinner
September 22, 2011
Dok Bua - Brookline, MA

Labor Day Dim-Sum with APALSA
September 3, 2011
Hei La Moon, Chinatown

Wrapping Up Fall Semester

2012-01-19T13:31:00.000-05:00

As the semester comes to an end, APALSA would like to give a quick review of the fall semester and things to look forward to in the spring.

Fall Events

+ Academic / Mentorship - Several events involved our 1L mentorship program which paired up more than 30 mentees this year.
+ Thank you to everyone who came to the LexisNexis Fundraiser, Inter-LSA Outlining Session sponsored by Bar Bri, and the Themis 1L Exam Prep Session.
+ Professional Networking - APALSA has been active in regional / national events attending AALAM events and sending nine 2Ls & 3Ls to the annual NAPABA Convention.

For the Spring - In addition to staying active in the community, we have several events planned.

+ January 25 - Back to School / Lunar New Year with APALSA & BLSA - performances and great food!
+ February 2 - Meet the Firms - a 1L networking event
+ March 3 - 3rd Annual BU APA Alum Conference - amazing speakers, panels and networking!

Also in the works...

+ Networking events with other Northeast APALSA groups and BU APA groups
+ Social event planned by 1L Reps
+ Alunni Mentorship Program
+ End of the Year Banquet

Post-Asian Pacific American Alumni Conference

2011-04-04T19:31:00.009-04:00

Pictures from the conference have now been posted on The 2nd Annual Asian Pacific American Alumni Conference.

The 2nd Annual Asian Pacific American Alumni Conference

2011-03-03T01:29:00.032-05:00

On behalf of Boston University School of Law's Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA), we welcome you to the 2nd Annual Asian Pacific American Alumni Conference. Last year BU APALSA hosted the inaugural APA Alumni Conference to warm reception. This year, we hope to build on that success and continue to unify and strengthen the Asian American community at Boston University School of Law and in the many fields of the legal profession.

This year’s Conference is entitled "Stepping Stones to a Stronger Community", with the goal of exploring social and legal issues that have implications for the unity of the Asian American community. The Conference is not restricted to students of Asian American ethnicity, however. The Conference is first and foremost an exciting opportunity for alumni--old and new, and from any law school--to connect and engage with each other, and for students to experience the wonderful legal network of which they are and will always be a part.

The Conference will take place on Saturday, April 2, 2011 at Boston University College of Arts and Sciences. The Conference is FREE, and includes lunch and dinner receptions. Registration may be completed at Conference Registration.

We look forward to meeting you in April! In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact APALSA at busl.apalsa@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns about the Conference.

CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
REGISTRATION & THE PACIFIC RIM COLD BUFFET LUNCH RECEPTION at the Faculty Dining Room

1: 00 PM – 1:15 PM
Conference attendees may use this time to make their way from GSU to College of Arts and Sciences (CAS)

1:15 PM – 1:45 PM
OPENING KEYNOTE ADDRESS

PROFESSOR VINCENT ENG of Columbia University Law School on Asian American Jurisprudence: Legal History of Asian Pacific Americans in the U.S.

1:45 PM – 2:00 PM
"COFFEE & MINGLE" BREAK

Sponsored by Boston University School of Law's Esdaile Alumni Center

2:00 PM – 3:15 PM
PANEL DISCUSSIONS I

Going In House: The Many Faces of In-House Counsel

Mr. David Park, Deputy General Counsel of Federal Reserve Bank of Boston

Ms. Kelly Koyama, Senior Counsel of Business & Legal Affairs at Marc Jacobs International

Ms. Michelle Rhee, Associate General Counsel at Bank of America

Ms. Rachel Lee, Senior Corporate Counsel at EMC Corporation

Going Solo: Starting Your Own Practices

Ms. Deborah Dong, law office of Deborah Dong (high technology, business, intellectual property, and estate planning)

Mr. Jason Chan, Law Office of Jason Chan (criminal law)

Mr. John Kim, Law Office of John C. Kim (bankruptcy law) and President of Persimmon Films

Ms. Sharyn Sooho, Law Office of Sharyn Sooho (family law)

Ms. YeWon Min, YeWon Min Law Office (intellectual property law)

3:15 PM – 3:30 PM
"COFFEE & MINGLE" BREAK

Sponsored by Boston University School of Law's Career Development Center

3:30 PM – 4:30 PM
SPEED MENTORING

4:30 PM – 5:45 PM
PANEL DISCUSSIONS II

Doing Legal Work in Asia: Experiences and Future Opportunities

Ms. Grace Guo, IP Group of Hogan Lovells, China

Mr. Shuzo Maruyama, former judge, Japan

Mr. Iskandar Mirzoev, former United Nations Associate Eligibility Officer in Syria

Mr. Yongsook Kwon, attorney at Jipyong & Jisung, Korea

Public interest: Advocating for the Asian Community

Ms. Cynthia Mark, Managing Attorney of the Asian Outreach Unit (AOU) at Greater Boston Legal Services

Ms. Anna Nguyen, Equal Justice Works Fellow at Greater Boston Legal Services

Ms. Bethany Li, Staff Attorney at Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund

6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
DINNER RECEPTION at Sichuan Gourmet Brookline

Out with the Old, In with the New

2010-05-26T23:45:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone,

Please note that the APALSA E-Board has changed for the 2010-2011 academic year. Congrats to the new e-board! We know you'll do great things with APALSA next year. Have a great summer everyone!

From,

APALSA E-Board 2009-2010

Pre-Meet the Firms, January 19; Meet the Firms, January 27

2010-01-07T13:48:00.003-05:00

Welcome back, everyone. We hope everyone had a relaxing and happy winter break. APALSA has two very important and very big events coming up!

Pre-Meet the Firms Discussion - Tuesday, January 19, 4-5pm, Room 870

Join APALSA and Sabrina Halloran from the CDO to discuss tips on navigating APALSA’s Meet the Firms Event. Any questions, please email Carolyn Mattus at mattusc@bu.edu.

APALSA's Meet the Firms - Wednesday, January 27, 6-7pm, Barrister's Hall; 7-9:30pm Room 1270

Are you thinking about working for a law firm? Do you want an introduction to law firm recruiting, law firm life, and to lawyers and recruiting coordinators from the area's top law firms? If so, come to APALSA's Meet the Firms, on January 27, 2010. There will be a moderated Q&A panel discussion featuring lawyers from six different firms at 6pm followed by a networking reception at 7pm with many Boston area law firms. Dress is business formal. Food and drinks will be served. If you have any questions, please contact Carolyn Mattus at mattusc@bu.edu.

Meet the Firms is a great way for 1Ls to get introduced to law firms in Boston as well as to what it's like to network with attorneys and make valuable contacts for the future. We strongly encourage all 1Ls to attend! This is a great way to practice talking to lawyers from firms with whom you may interview during 2L recruiting, as well as get a better idea of what it is like to practice law at a law firm. It is also the best way to get introduced to law firms and law firm life if you do not have any idea what it is all about or if you're not sure if it's for you.

Participating firms:

Bingham McCutchen LLP

Brown Rudnick LLP

Choate Hall & Stewart LLP

Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP

Foley Hoag LLP

Goodwin Procter LLP

Goulston & Storrs P.C.

Holland & Knight LLP

McDermott Will & Emery LLP

Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky & Popeo, P.C.

Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

Ropes & Gray LLP

Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP

Sullivan & Worcester

Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP

Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr LLP

Wolf Greenfield & Sacks P.C.

Prepare for exams with APALSA

2009-11-04T18:19:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone,

Just a friendly reminder that APALSA will be having its annual Outlining/Finals Prep Workshop tomorrow, Thursday Nov. 5 @ 1pm in Room 520.

We will be talking hornbooks, notes, how to make an outline, flowcharts, writing an exam answer, exam day tips, and much more! There will also be food.

Any questions, please email busl.apalsa@gmail.com

Thanks and see you there!
Carolyn

Wednesday Update

2009-09-13T19:51:00.007-04:00

Hi APALSA family,

I hope everyone's first weeks of school has been going well! Here's your (first) weekly dose of news and updates:

1. Thanks to everyone who came to our first meeting! We thought it was a success. For those of you who couldn't make it, here are your 1L representatives:

Section A: Julia Ong and Tae Yeon Kim

Section B: Eileen Eib and Joanna Kong

Section C: Jia Leung and Hao Wang

Remember, even though you're not a 1L rep, you are totally welcome to send us any ideas you have for events or issues we can address and participate in APALSA events. In fact, we encourage it! As a reminder, you do not have to be Asian to be in APALSA.

2. The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) will be having a poll monitoring training for the upcoming general election. The training will be held on October 20 in Room 532 at BU Law at 1pm. The actual general elections, for which you will be doing the poll monitoring, will be on November 3. If you're interested in participating, please complete the registration form at http://www.aaldef.net/ and bring the completed form to the training. If you have any questions, please e-mail Eric Lee.

Here is a brief description of AALDEF:

Asian Americans have faced a series of barriers in exercising their right to vote. For example, in recent elections, names were missing from lists of registered voters, ballots were not translated, interpreters provided improper instructions, and poll workers were rude or hostile.

In response, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) and other community groups have monitored elections for compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act and to document instances of anti-Asian voter disenfranchisement.

In July 2005, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the City of Boston for violations of the Voting Rights Act. A settlement that required the Boston to provide bilingual ballots and interpreters expired in 2008, but the City agreed to continue to provide bilingual ballots on a voluntarily basis.

Several groups are organizing volunteer attorneys to monitor the elections for any backsliding to this commitment. Volunteers will inspect poll sites, observe poll worker conduct, and interview voters.

Volunteer attorneys will be dispatched to poll sites across Boston. Volunteers will check for translated voting materials and interpreters, or survey voters, in one or more three-hour shift(s) on Election Day. Polls are open from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Bilingual ability is not required. This is a non-partisan effort.

3. Thanks to everyone who came out to the Mentor/Mentee dinner last week at Dok Bua! If you still do not know who your mentor/mentee is, or if you would like a mentor/mentee, please email us at busl.apalsa@gmail.com

4. There's a really great and very unique moot court competition coming up on the First Amendment and media law. We highly encourage you to check it out. Here are the details:

The American Bar Association Forum on Communications Law is hosting its Second Annual First Amendment and Media Law Diversity Moot Court Competition this fall. The competition is co-sponsored by the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA), the National Latino/a Law Student Association (NLLSA), the National Native American Law Students Association (NNALSA), and the National Asian Pacific American Law Student Association (NAPALSA).

The competition is designed primarily to expose minority law students to the Forum on Communications Law and the practice of media law and offers law students a unique opportunity to apply their writing and advocacy skills to issues relevant to the media bar. Competition participants will brief and argue a hypothetical appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Twelfth Circuit. The finalists of regional competitions in Boston, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, and Chicago will compete in Key Largo, Florida in the national semi-final and final rounds of the competition, which will take place during the Forum’s 15th Annual Conference. The Forum will cover the travel and lodging expenses for the four teams participating in the semi-final and final rounds, including to stay on for the rest of the conference, which is attended by First Amendment, media and communications lawyers from around the country.

The inaugural competition, which took place in February 2009 during the Forum’s 14th Annual Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona, was a great success. The final oral argument – conducted before an audience of over 100 media lawyers –was heard by an esteemed panel: Justice Andrew D. Hurwitz of the Arizona Supreme Court; Judge Pierre N. Leval of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; and Judge Peter B. Swann of the Arizona Court of Appeals. Following oral argument, the judges offered feedback to the law student participants and then opened the floor to questions and discussion about effective appellate advocacy. The Forum is excited about the prospect of organizing an equally successful competition this fall and hopes that students from your organization will participate.

The regional competitions will be held on either Saturday, January 9, 2010 or Saturday, January 16, 2010. The national semi-final and final rounds in Key Largo will be held on Thursday, January 28, 2010.

Your school has been invited to field a team of two Juris Doctor candidates who are members of either BLSA, NLLSA, NNALSA or NAPALSA or a minority law student organization at the school. If a school’s moot court board declines to field a team, students at that school will have the opportunity to apply directly to the Forum to participate in the competition (in this case, if more than one team from a school applies to compete, the team representing the school will be selected at random). In either case, students must register by Friday, October 9, 2009.

We would appreciate your help in getting the word out about the competition. In addition, if any of your members are interested in competing, we encourage you to contact Jeanette Melendez Bead, the Competition Steering Committee Chair, at jbead@lskslaw.com or 202-508-1134.

Additional information about the competition, including this year’s Moot Court Problem and Official Rules, may be found at http://www.abanet.org/forums/communication/moot_competition.html.

Have a good week,

APALSA

Community Service Opportunity

2009-08-30T15:20:00.004-04:00

Hi APALSA members,

There's a great community service opportunity coming up! APALSA is teaming up with AALDEF (Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund) to coordinate a poll monitoring program for Boston's preliminary election. The primaries will take place on September 22. If you volunteer your time, you will be helping to conduct one of the largest exit polls and voter protection initiatives for Asian American voters. Volunteers are required to undergo a 1-hour training session that will be held on September 18 at Boston University. Each polling shift on September 22 is for 3 hours, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. here in Boston.

Come out and protect voters' rights! Start getting your volunteer hours for PIP! If you're interested in being a part of this great service event, please e-mail us at busl.apalsa@gmail.com.

Thanks and have a great first week of classes,

APALSA E-Board

Goodbye Summer, Hello Law School

2009-07-27T13:13:00.005-04:00

Hello APALSA Members!

On behalf of this year's E-Board, welcome to the official blog of APALSA @ BU Law. E-Board members will be posting here periodically about news and events pertaining to APALSA life at BU Law.

APALSA is the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association. We are committed to voicing and addressing issues facing Asian/Pacific Americans at BU Law, in Boston, and in the legal community at large. We also sponsor several academic, professional, and community service events throughout the year and sponsor a 1L mentorship program. We provide many opportunities for law students of all years to socialize and make friends as well. We welcome and encourage people of all races and ethnicities to join our organization, so don't be shy!

At this time we are developing our calendar of events for the upcoming academic year. We will post events as they are scheduled.

And now for some announcements:

1. ATTENTION 1Ls! We strongly encourage you to participate in the Be Yourself Orientation on August 24-25, 2009. Please go to http://www.bu.edu/law/central/jd/contacts/affairs/beyourself/index.html and fill out the registration form by August 10th. A tentative schedule is available at the above link and a final schedule will follow in the coming weeks. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Nicole Price,Associate Director for Academic and Multicultural Affairs at (617)358-1800 or ngprice@bu.edu.

I can personally attest to how the Be Yourself Orientation is enjoyable and worthwhile. I met many of my law school friends at the Be Yourself Orientation. It was a great experience and allowed me to meet many of my new classmates before the formal orientation program. It also gave me a good sense of what the BU Law community is like for students of color and allowed me to network with alumni of color as well.

2. The annual NAPABA Convention will be held in Boston this year from Nov. 18-21. Attending the conference or volunteering is a great way to get to know the Asian Pacific legal community and its interests as well as meet attorneys and other law students.Please e-mail busl.apalsa@gmail.com if you are interested in attending or volunteering at this event. Details about the conference can be found here: http://www.napaba.org/

3. If you are an alumnus of BU Law's APALSA or if you are a law graduate from any school who would like to join our network, we encourage you to e-mail us with your name, e-mail address, graduation year, law school, undergraduate school, and current place of employment at busl.apalsa@gmail.com so we can send you updates about BU Law and so we can put you in our alumni database. In these difficult economic times, it is more important than ever to develop a strong network of APALSA alumni for the benefit of current students and alumni. Having a strong alumni network would also help us attract more Asian students and those interested in Asian culture to apply to BU Law. Please help by e-mailing us today!

Thanks for reading,
Carolyn
External VP