On Friday, May 21, 2021, the MBBA will host its 37th Annual Anniversary Awards Gala as a virtual event. We invite you to become a 2021 sponsor of the Annual Gala as we celebrate 37 years of promoting diversity and inclusion, providing professional development opportunities and working towards a more just legal system. This year’s gala theme is “L.E.A.P. into Excellence: Amplify the Power of the Black Bar.”

The MBBA continues to fulfill its purpose of addressing racial, economic and social injustice by creating partnerships around various issues, providing a forum for candid open conversations and making recommendations on how individuals and institutions can increase their efforts in the fight against systemic racism. The work of the MBBA targets its programming and outreach to specifically address the legal issues and explore the opportunities to change the inequalities that Black citizens face in this country on a daily basis. We have increased our advocacy and legislative work by calling out the injustices in the Nation. This is demonstrated in our recent public statements and our testimonies at various State legislative hearings addressing issues directly affecting Black legal professionals and the Black community at large.

One of our primary goals is to ensure that Black lawyers and law students are succeeding in the legal profession. To this end, we launched the L.E.A.P. Career Forum, a monthly webinar series that provides law students and young lawyers with information about the varied work done by attorneys in a specific practice area. This arms our future leaders with the tools to truly understand the plethora of legal career trajectories they can explore. We also continued our work to help diversify the bench by expanding our class of candidates for the 2nd Annual Judicial Training Academy – with 20 new applicants ready to start their journey to the bench. The MBBA also expanded its community-based programs by organizing various Know Your Rights seminars targeting specific areas of law intended to (i) advise the community members of their legal rights and (ii) provide them with information they need to know in order to make an informed decision for themselves and their families.

Our work does not stop there and it cannot continue without your support! We need your help to expand our attorney training programs, provide continued access to legal advice, award more scholarships to members of our Black communities, both professionally and at a grass roots level. We are committed to the success of our Black lawyers and Black law students. You can show your continued commitment to the MBBA by sponsoring the Gala. The sponsorship rates for our Gala are as follows: Platinum ($25,000), Gold ($17,000), Silver ($12,000), and Bronze ($8,500) Level. Sponsors will also have the benefit of connecting with our impressive network of donors and supporters.

HONOREES

Our Gala honorees this year are:

  • Trailblazer of the Year: Alphonzo A. Grant, Jr. – Managing Director, Morgan Stanley, Head of the Global Litigation Group’s Special Investigation Unit for Institutional Securities and Investment Management
  • Corporate Counsel of the Year: Kevin Clunis, Senior Vice President, Legal, Ross Stores, Inc.
  • Private Practitioner of the Year: Lori Anne Douglass, Partner, Douglass Rademacher LLP
  • Public Servant of the Year: Rosemonde Pierre-Louis, Deputy Director for Administration and External Affairs, McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research, NYU Silver School of Social Work
  • Jurist of the Year: Hon. Cheryl E. Chambers, Associate Justice, New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Second Department (Past Chair of the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Black Bar Association)

If you have any questions about or our 37th Anniversary Awards Gala, I can be reached directly at president@mbbanyc.org or (347) 512-0478. For questions about the May 2021, 37th Anniversary Virtual Awards Gala, please contact Miguel Clarke at Bee Season Consulting, at (646) 651-1232 ext. 11 or mcbeeseason@gmail.com.

By sponsoring the MBBA’s 37th Anniversary Awards Gala, you are investing in greater diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. We thank you for considering our sponsorship request and hope to see you on May 21st!