Speakers

• Megan Rha, Partner, Rha Kim Grossman & McIlwain, LLP

• D. Jenny Kim, Partner, Rha Kim Grossman & McIlwain, LLP

Moderator

• Henry C. Chan, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Wilson & Chan, LLP

Description

Practicing law while running a law firm as a small business is very demanding and challenging, and quite stressful. Having a law partner can make the journey more manageable, provided the partnership functions well. The proposed program intends to look at the best practices and strategies for starting and operating a successful and effective law partnership. The presenters will be Megan Rha and D. Jenny Kim of Rha Kim Grossman & McIlwain, LLP (“RKGM”) who will draw from their own law partnership that began almost 20 years ago. 

Lessons from their decades-long practice will impart strategies, practical tools, and real-life anecdotes and reflections. Some of the lessons we will discuss during the presentation include:

• Reminiscing together - how something begins can shape everything, so return to the origin often, remember what united us, and celebrate what continues to keep us together

• Keeping each other grounded by remembering why we rely on one another

• Being on the “same page” as we venture down different paths – addressing why we chose to go from two separate offices into one shared office 

• Building our strategies and best practices by assessing and appreciating our differences and similarities

• Balancing the serious nature of practicing law with the entrepreneurial nature of operating and growing a business – how our partnership empowers us to take the leap, build our business, and fly

• Cultivating strong interpersonal skills and mutual respect to sustain and grow our partnership – through frequent communication, shared vision, mutual appreciation, space to thrive independently, and equitable sharing of the workload 

Speakers:

• Marjorie Ouyang, Founding partner, Valley & Summit Law

• Wendy Cheng, Partner, China Brands

• Yixuan Zhu, Partner, Quinn Emanuel, Beijing Office

Moderator

• Lijun Zhang, Litigator, White & Case LLP

Description

As businesses expand across borders, the risks and realities of intellectual property infringement continue to evolve. This panel will explore the latest developments in U.S. and Chinese IP enforcement, including trademark and copyright disputes, anti-counterfeiting strategies, cross-border litigation, arbitration, and recent case law shaping the IP landscape. Drawing from their own war stories and front-line experiences, the speakers will share insights on both defensive and offensive strategies that companies can use to protect and enforce their rights, while navigating the increasingly complex IP environment in two of the world’s most critical markets.

Speakers

• Prianka Nair, Co-Director of the Bet Tzedek Civil Litigation Clinic, Cardozo Law School

• Eman Rimawi-Doster, Senior Organizer, Disability Justice

Moderator

• Amanda Chan, Associate Attorney, Outten & Golden

Description

This panel discussion will delve into the crucial topic of disability rights and its intersection with Asian American identity. This discussion aims to shed light on the unique challenges faced by Asian Americans with disabilities, the impact of their cultural identity on their experiences, and the broader implications for the community at large.

Through the following discussion points, the panelists will help the audience deepen their understanding of the intersection between disability rights and Asian American identity, to recognize the ongoing challenges, and to inspire action towards a more inclusive and equitable society for all. 

• Understanding Intersectionality: How do disability rights intersect with Asian American identity, and why is this intersection important?

•  Personal Narratives: Hear firsthand accounts from individuals who navigate the complex terrain of being both Asian American and disabled. Their stories highlight resilience, advocacy, and the ongoing fight for equality.

• Policy and Advocacy: What are the current policies affecting this community, and what changes are needed to ensure equitable treatment and opportunities?

•  Community Support: The role of community organizations in supporting disabled Asian Americans and how solidarity can drive meaningful change.

• Collective Power: The importance of banding together to harness our power as disabled Asian Americans in driving systemic change and building a supportive network.

Speakers

• Jane Chuang, Senior Counsel, Goldstein Hall

• Sheila Pozon, Partner, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer

• Edith Hsu-Chen, Executive Director, Department of City Planning

• My Chang, Chief of Staff, Asian Americans for Equality

Moderator

• Margaret Ling, NYS Agency Underwriting Counsel, Education Director and Agency Business Development, Amtrust Title Insurance Company; Co-Chair, Real Estate Committee

Description

The City of Yes for Housing Opportunity (COYHO) is the most ambitious update to NYC’s zoning code since 1961, with the goal of creating 80,000 homes over the next 15 years in every NYC neighborhood. As part of this program, you will play the role of developer as you plan a proposed development and weigh the pros and cons of the different tools offered under COYHO. Will COYHO increase the availability of affordable housing in NYC? Find out for yourself.

Speakers

• Elizabeth Mo, Partner, The law Firm of Hugh H. Mo, PC

• Yi Liu, Senior Counsel, Labor and Employment Division, New York City Law Department

• Anden Chow, Partner, MoloLamken LLP

• Michael Ramos, Partner & Chief Risk and Compliance Officer, Nardello & Co

• Michael Krouse, Partner, Arnold & Porter

• Rahul Agrawal, White collar and Litigation Partner, Friedman Kaplan Seiler Adelman & Robbins

• Li Yu, Partner, Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP

Moderator

• Pei Pei Cheng De Castro, Partner, Barclay Damon LLP

Description

Whether it’s flipping a co-defendant in a criminal investigation or navigating whistleblower allegations during an internal investigation, the most critical information often comes from insiders. But earning and managing that trust—especially across cultural, linguistic, or institutional barriers—requires legal skill and more.

This roundtable, led by former prosecutors, defense attorneys, and whistleblower experts, will explore how attorneys (in-house and/or defense counsel) can:

Assess the credibility and motivations of insiders

● Navigate privilege and confidentiality boundaries

● Prepare and protect whistleblowers from retaliation

● Engage cooperators from cultures where “snitching” carries stigma

● Handle situations involving immigrant witnesses or language barriers

Real-world scenarios and hypotheticals will ground the discussion, with insights on how cultural context, empathy, and institutional trust play vital roles in getting to the truth. Sample Q&A and checklist/summaries will be given to participants.

Speakers

• Alla Roytberg, Attorney Mediator, Roytberg Traum Law and mediation, P.C.

• Maxine Park, Attorney Mediator, Park Law and Mediation

• Hon. Patricia Brimais-Tenemille, Support Magistrate, NY Courts

Moderator

• Rachel Ji-Young Yoo, Partner, Yoo Law Group, LLC

Description

Attorneys play an important role in mediation, often providing legal consulting and review services. Mediation offers an effective method for resolving legal disputes—whether it be in divorce or family law, general civil matters, or business-related—by promoting dialogue and reducing adversarial conflict. Incorporating cross-cultural considerations into mediation can lead to more meaningful and customized outcomes, often preserving relationships and enhancing client satisfaction. Moreover, mediation can be less contentious for both parties and professionals, supporting well-being and self-care.

This session will explore:

• What mediation is and what roles attorneys can play

• How attorneys can improve client outcomes through mediation

• Best practices for providing legal consulting and review attorney services under a limited-scope retainer

• A view from the bench – perspectives from a Support Magistrate 

• The difference between a settlement conference and a mediation session 

• Why mediation may be a better process for culturally diverse clients

Speakers

• Hon. Pamela Chen, Eastern District of New York

• Hon. Karen M.C. Cortes, Bronx County Family Court

• Hon. Judy Kim, New York State Supreme Court, New York County

• Hon. Peggy Kuo, Eastern District of New York

• Hon. Karen Lin, New York State Supreme Court

• Hon. Soma Syed, Queens County Civil Court

• Hon. Lillian Wan, Associate Justice, Appellate Division, Second Department

• Hon. Frances Wang, Queens Supreme Court

• Hon. Ona T. Wang, Southern District of New York

• Vishal Chander, Managing Attorney, The Chander Law Firm

• Becky Chen, Assistant Law Clerk, Appellate Division, Second Department

• Francis Chin, Senior Systems Engineer, K2 Services

• Gracie Iwersen, Student, Seton Hall University School of Law

• Hassan Jamil, Law Clerk, Malapero Prisco & Klauber LLP

• Eliana Yuna Jeong, Student, Columbia University

• Emily Kam, Student, Columbia University

• Charlotte Kim, Student, Fordham School of Law

• Mirai Kim, Student, Seton Hall University School of Law

• Emily Lai, Student, Albany Law School

• Margaret Ling, NYS Agency Underwriting Counsel, Education Director and Agency Business Development, Amtrust Title Insurance Company

• Kwok Kei Ng, Court Attorney, New York State Unified Court System

• Rose Cuison-Villazor, Professor of Law and Chancellor’s Social Justice Scholar at Rutgers Law School

• Jameson Xu, Principal, Law Offices of Jameson Xu PLLC

• Cecilia Yang, Vice Chair, AABANY Young Lawyers Committee

• Gary Yeung, Associate, McDermott Will & Schulte

• Ariel Zhang, Student, St. John’s University School of Law

Moderator

• Albert Tong, Student, Brooklyn Law School

Description

This program is an AABANY Trial Reenactment of Ozawa v. U.S. (1922) and U.S. v. Bhagat Singh Thind (1923), two landmark Supreme Court cases that denied Asian immigrants the right to naturalized citizenship based on race.

Ozawa and Thind reveal how American citizenship was shaped by racial boundaries rather than equality. Ozawa’s appeal to cultural assimilation and Thind’s reliance on science led to both men being excluded because they were not considered “white.” Their cases underscore how acceptance was based on bias, not reason.

These reenactments highlight the power of community, resilience, and solidarity in the face of exclusion. As birthright citizenship comes under renewed scrutiny today, their stories remind us that inclusion is an ongoing struggle that requires collective action to protect the rights of all who call this country home.

Speakers

• Yen-Yi Anderson, Managing Principal, Anderson & Associates Law, PC

• David Mou, Founder, Mou Legal PLLC

• Kwok Kei Ng, Court Attorney, New York State Unified Court System

Moderator

• Gary Yeung, Associate, McDermott Will & Schulte

Description

Members of the New York AANHPI community often face deep uncertainty when dealing with immigration and employment disputes or when someone sues them for money.  These challenges threaten the lives they have worked hard to build, and community members need legal resources to forcefully advocate for their rights. This program will equip lawyers with the tools to effectively advise clients on common immigration matters, employment discrimination, and monetary matters such as small claims. By training lawyers, we help empower the community to advocate for itself. Through education, this program increases the power of “us”; not only as AANHPI lawyers, but as a united AANHPI community to do good.

Speakers

• Yumi Lawlor, General Counsel, Forage Technology Corporation

• Terry Shen, General Counsel, ISS STOXX

• Liz Nie, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary, Acorns Grow

• Kazuko Wachter, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, EquiLend

Moderator

TBD

Description

The General Counsel Roundtable Panel will explore the career paths of esteemed General Counsels within innovative and cutting-edge companies at the intersection of financial services and technology. Drawing on personal and professional experiences with respect to their path to becoming a General Counsel, the panelists will share strategies for cultivating the skills to signal that you are “leadership-ready.”

Speakers

• Zhixian Liu, Partner, Z Liu Law Group, P.C.

• Susan Song, Senior Associate, Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP

• Rose Cuison-Villazor, Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School

Moderator

• Gaurav Mukherjee, Visiting Assistant Professor of Law, UConn School of Law

Description

With the second Trump Administration, U.S. immigration policy is undergoing sweeping changes through executive orders, presidential memoranda, and agency rulemaking. These developments are reshaping the landscape of immigration law and practice, impacting both individual and corporate stakeholders. This program, offered jointly by the Immigration Law Committee and the Academic Committee, will offer a timely overview of the evolving legal and policy environment and assess its real-world implications for immigrant communities and legal practitioners. In addition to practical insights from immigration lawyers, the program will feature law professors who will provide a broader academic and constitutional perspective, offering context on the legal theories, due process implications, and potential litigation trajectories stemming from Trump-era immigration policies.

Topics to be discussed include:

• One Big Beautiful Bill and the immigration and border enforcement

• Due Process for Immigrants: Ongoing legal challenges to expedited removal, credible fear screenings, and the erosion of procedural protections in immigration courts.

• Visa Adjudication Trends: Increased scrutiny and delays in the adjudication of both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas, and how changing standards affect businesses and individuals alike.

• Corporate Compliance in Uncertain Times: Strategic guidance for business clients navigating evolving compliance obligations, site visits, and audits.

• Red Flags at the Border: Advising clients facing heightened travel restrictions, CBP’s expanded discretionary powers at ports of entry, and the growing use of digital device searches.

• Impacts on Individuals and Families: A focus on F-1 visa revocations, the role of nationwide injunctions, and federal court litigation involving DACA, TPS, and parole programs.

• Investment-Based Immigration: The future of the EB-5 visa program and analysis of emerging proposals such as a U.S. “gold card.”

• Humanitarian Pathways Under Threat: Legislative and executive branch developments affecting asylum, humanitarian parole, TPS, and refugee admissions.

• AANHPI Communities and Structural Disparities: How immigration policy shifts under Trump 2.0 are uniquely impacting Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities legally, politically, and socially.
  
  The panel aims to bridge practice and theory, offering a nuanced understanding of how legal rules, enforcement discretion, and political rhetoric converge to shape immigration outcomes.

Speakers

• Benjamin Choi, Court Attorney, New York City Housing Court

• Natasha Chang, Staff Attorney, White and Case

• Helen Wu, Manager, Family Law, Womankind

Moderator

• Justin Lee, Associate, Kelley Drye and Warren

Description

Being a New Yorker often means navigating a range of housing-related challenges.  The complexity of housing, the need to plan for the family, and the possible property division in divorce all highlight the importance of ensuring the AANHPI community has access to sound legal guidance. Part 2 of this program equips attorneys with the tools to better advise clients on both sides of landlord-tenant disputes, property transfers across generations, and divorce-related property issues.  Completing the cluster of six topics that this panel series covers aims to give lawyers what they need to start tackling the legal issues that are most prevalent in the AANHPI community.  

Speakers

• Bethany Li, Executive Director, Asian American Legal Defense & Education Fund

• Marika Dias, Managing Director, Urban Justice Center

• Jenny Lam, Associate, Cohen, Weiss and Simon LLP

• Philip Desgranges, Attorney-In-Charge, Legal Aid Society

• Kevin Jason, Deputy Director, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Inc

Moderator

• Vishal Chander, Managing Attorney, The Chander Law Firm

Description

The return of the Trump Administration in 2025 has resulted in political turmoil and persecution across the country, creating a climate of fear and challenges to our democracy and the rule of law. At the same time, a movement of resistance against the administration has grown across the country with mass protests and legal challenges occurring on a regular basis.

This program will explore “movement lawyering” for legal professionals and law students interested in activism, including the following questions:

1. How can we come together to protect one another in a time of increasing economic inequality and political repression?

2. How should we use our legal knowledge and skills whether at work or in the community to resist and push for systemic change?

3. How do we counteract the challenges and elimination of the concepts of diversity, equity and inclusion?

Speakers

• Jiaying Jiang - Associate Professor of Law, University of Florida Levin College of Law

• Sarah Chen, Partner, Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP

• Joie Yang

Moderator

• Ada Wang, Associate, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Description

As blockchain technology and digital assets continue to evolve, lawyers and regulators are racing to keep pace with innovation. This panel brings together leading women practitioners in crypto law and regulation to demystify the legal framework governing cryptocurrency and blockchain, clarify key terminology, and highlight the latest developments under the current administration.

Panelists will share insights into how blockchain is being applied across industries today, as well as the challenges and opportunities created by emerging regulatory trends. They will also draw from their own career paths and personal experiences to discuss how they entered this cutting-edge field, offering practical advice for law students and aspiring lawyers who want to build a future in crypto law.

From “war stories” in navigating novel legal questions to strategies for staying ahead of regulatory change, this conversation will provide both a foundation in crypto regulation and inspiration from trailblazing women at the forefront of this space.