End of Summer Joint Mixer on August 29

 

Please join the HBA, the Orange County Asian American Bar Association, and the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association and say good-bye to summer by attending this End of Summer Joint Mixer.   Download the flyer for more information. RSVP by August 24th by contacting the HBA at info@ochba.org or at 949-440-6700 ext. 253. 
 

Congratulations to former HBA Treasurer, John G. Cruz, who was recently named the Governor's Appointments Secretary.  Cruz served as a commissioner on the California Gambling Control Commission (CGCC) since 2005.  He has been licensed to practice law in California since 1979 and specialized in real estate, business and transactional law. In 1992, Cruz founded the law firm of Daehnke & Cruz, where he practiced until becoming a commissioner for CGCC. Previous to that, he served as an associate and as of counsel with several law firms located in Southern California, as well as having his own private practice. The HBA enthusiastically congratulates John and his family! For more information please download the press release. 

The Inaugural California Diversity and Leadership Conference will be one of California's most unique and exclusive diversity conferences and job fairs.  The conference takes place September 19-21, 2007, at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco.  Featured conference events include: law firm diversity summit, diversity in higher education summit, a law school diversity summit, and an exceptional job fair.  For more information visit www.californiadiversityconference.com or download the flyer.

Jane Goodall, Eleanor Clift and author James Bradley will headline the State Bar Annual Meeting scheduled for Sept. 27-30 in Anaheim.  A new State Bar president and five new
members of the board of governors will be sworn in at the convention, which offers a low-cost opportunity for California attorneys to earn up to 20 MCLE credits in one weekend.  Members of Group 3, whose last names start with N-Z, must complete 25 hours of MCLE by Feb. 1.

The Bench Bar Biannual Conference will be held at the same time, bringing together judicial leaders from throughout the state to share their insights on issues affecting the justice system. Chief Justice Ronald M. George will deliver his State of the Judiciary address as well.

A full preview of meeting events is available at the State Bar website at www.calbar.org. Attendees may register and make hotel reservations online at that site. The deadline for early bird registration is Aug. 27.

 

Looking for pro bono opportunities?  The Public Law Center (PLC) can help.  Please download the list of cases where PLC is seeking pro bono attorneys.  A list of sample cases for you to consider include cases involving a Violence Against Women Act Petition (PLC 07-1011109), auto fraud/odometer rollback (PLC 07-1011204), and guardianship (PLC 07-1011311).

For anyone who is interested in a pro bono Guardianship case, but inexperienced in this area of law, PLC/OCBA presents the Pro Bono Training: Basic Guardianship on Thursday, September 13 from 6:00 p.m. - 9:15 p.m.  The training is FREE, but does require attending attorneys to provide legal representation in 1 pro bono case and 2 visits to the weekly Guardianship Clinic held at the Lamoreaux Justice Center.  Please do consider this training as a way to earn 3 CLE credits, learn about a new area of law and provide some pro bono assistance to some of our most vulnerable clients.  To register for the training, please go to www.ocbar.org, or download the flyer for more information.

Here is your chance to join the 2008 Dinner Committee and help raise money for the Wally Davis Scholarship!  The first meeting of the 2008 HBA Dinner Committee will be held on Wednesday, September 12, 2007, at 6:00 p.m.  Send us an e-mail at info@ochba.org and the 2008 Dinner Committee Chair, Norma Garcia Guillen, will contact you with additional details.

The HBA is also currently accepting nominees for its annual dinner awards: Attorney of the Year, Guardian de Justicia and Lifetime Achievement.  For more information on the awards download the flyer.  If you have someone you'd like to nominate, please submit your nomination(s) via e-mail at info@ochba.org no later than Friday, September 7, 2007.  Please provide a resume or background information about the nominee.
 

Did you miss the HBA's 29th Annual Installation Dinner & Scholarship Fundraiser where we recognized the trailblazers of Orange County's Latino community?  Well, here's your chance to catch a portion of the evening.  For a small donation you can now receive your very own copy of a DVD profiling one of the awardees of the evening or the Orange County Latino Trailblazers. 

 

In the spirit of the evening's theme - Rompiendo Barreras, Formando Caminos/Breaking Barriers, Blazing Paths - the HBA honored the Honorable Judge Frances Muñoz, the first Latina to be appointed to the bench in California, and Joseph L. Chairez, the first Latino to serve as President of the Orange County Bar Association in its over 100 year history. In addition, there was a special video tribute to other Orange County Latino trailblazers, including:

Alex Maldonado: one of the founders of the first LULAC in Orange County
lola Gallardo: the first Latina police "matron" in Orange County;
Joe O'Campo: the first Latino appointed as State Appraiser in Orange County
Hon. Loretta Sanchez: the first Latina elected to U.S. Congress in Orange County. 

 

To receive a copy of one of the above DVDs, please make your $15 donation payable to the Hispanic Bar Association/OCCF and mail to the Hispanic Bar Association, P.O. Box 17777, Irvine, CA 92623-7777.  Please be certain to identify which DVD you are ordering.  All proceeds will go to the Wallace (Wally) R. Davis Memorial Scholarship Fund.

The HBA is honored to welcome the following new members to the HBA familia:

 

Not currently a member? Join now and your membership is FREE in 2008!

Are you an existing member? Recruit five (5) new paid members and your membership is FREE in 2008!

Download and submit your application today!