As a former Co-Social Director, I had the pleasure of organizing events that brought our FBANC community together. The skills I acquired in organizing large social gatherings prepared me for the most rewarding experience I’ve had as an FBANC board member so far. This year, I had the privilege of working with brilliant, dedicated, and hard-working law student leaders from all over the Bay Area in assisting them in organizing and executing a successful and thought-provoking Komunidad 5 Conference at UC Law SF on February 24, 2024. My wealth of experience from these two roles has strengthened my leadership and organizational skills and, most importantly, my commitment to disseminating information about FBANC events and ways to give back to our community. These are essential skills I have that will lead me to succeed as the Secretary for FBANC 44.  

If elected, I will prioritize transparency, engagement, and synergy with the FBANC Board, our members, and the general legal community in the Bay Area. Additionally, I aim to ensure that FBANC Board Meeting minutes are readily available to our members so that all may be informed about the work done by our dedicated board of directors in advancing FBANC’s mission in our community.

I will achieve these goals by strengthening the FBANC Secretary’s close collaborative relationship with the Communications committee and the Operations Directors. I plan to publish quarterly FBANC newsletters and provide monthly updates on upcoming events. In addition, connect and invite our general members and law students to get involved by submitting short stories and articles for the FBANC Newsletter to celebrate our members’ uniqueness and talents. I plan to work directly with the Board to ensure that FBANC members are always well-informed and that our events are well-marketed. To do this, I intend to develop internal and external communication protocols to expand our marketing and direct communication with our members through social media and other methods. Moreover, I plan to work to ensure that the content on the FBANC website is regularly updated with upcoming FBANC events, including updating the calendar of events so that every member can easily access event information from the website whenever and wherever they are. 

Lastly, here is some background information about me: 

I am an associate attorney in our San Francisco office’s general liability practice group at Lewis, Brisbois, Bisgaard & Smith, LLP. 

I received my J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law. During my time there, I served as Co-President of the Pilipino-American Law Society, President of Asian Pacific American Law Society (APALSA), Secretary for the Pride Law Student Association, and Media Chair for the Environmental Law Student and Alumni Society (ELSAS). I was the Symposium Editor for the USF Law Review. I was also a Tutor for the Academic Support Program in Torts Law (Fall 2017), Evidence (Fall 2018), and Constitutional Law (Spring 2019). I was the recipient of the 2019 Student Bar Association Award. 

I moved to the U.S. from the Philippines in 1990 and have lived in the Bay Area since, with a brief stint in Central Coast for undergrad at UC Santa Barbara, where I earned a BA in Political Science and Global Studies and a minor in Asian American Studies. 

As a Co-Chair of FBANC’s LGBTQI+ Committee, I’m proud to be part of our diverse and accepting FBANC community, and if elected, I look forward to serving FBANC Move Forward as Secretary for 2024-2025.