American Bar Association YLD Honors FBANC

The American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (ABA YLD) recognized FBANC with not one but two awards this past Tuesday, August 3, 2021. FBANC is the first California bar association and the first affinity bar association to be recognized by ABA YLD in the categories of Diversity and Service to the Public. The awards were based on FBANC's Komunidad conferences in partnership with the Bay Area PALS Coalition and FBANC's unemployment form assistance clinic over the past years.

Diversity Award - We elevated our commitment to the next generation of leaders with our Komunidad conferences these past two years. This conference is the first of its kind in the country and represented the biggest gathering of Filipino/a/x American law students in history. We gathered students and mentors across the nation, making sure that our rising attorneys do not feel isolated in this profession, especially in the midst of a global pandemic.

Service to the Public Award - During the pandemic, we provided one of the first virtual clinics available in California to help hundreds who lost their jobs due to the pandemic. For two months, along with Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Asian Law Caucus, we were open 7 days a week and 12 hours a day to serve those suffering from unemployment, many of whom were low-wage Filipino workers. We provided services grounded on language access and cultural competency, offering services in Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Korean. We served 140 clients and served over 500 callers.

FBANC President Jennifer Sta.Ana and Immediate Past President Mari Bandoma Callado accepted the awards in front of a live, national audience. Thank you to our members--law students, paralegals, paraprofessionals, attorneys, and judges--and our community partners for their critical work in these programs.

Contact FBANC President Jennifer Sta.Ana (jenniferstaana@fbanc.org) for more information.