MDLA will feature "And Then They Came For Us," a documentary on the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Afterwards, we will discuss the film and steps to take to ensure that this dark chapter in history is never repeated with panelists from Minnesota diversity bars, including representatives from the Somali American Bar, Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association, and the Minnesota Association of Black Lawyers.

Where: Conference Center, 5th Street Towers 100 South 5th St. Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402 United States

Contact: Anna Kim at akim@lmc.org

For more information, please visit: https://www.mdla.org/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1198202

Asia Media Access in partnership with the Thai Cultural Council of Minnesota is hosting a Celestial Celebration Gala to raise funds towards community building of Southeast Asian refugees and their families. These funds will be used for cultural events and exchanges locally and internationally to help strengthening the Southeast Asian identity of youth, to help youth to explore and understand their cultural and ethnic heritage, and to navigate their cultural identity in the United States. The event will feature a silent auction, Southeast Asian music and dances from local and international troupes, and special Southeast Asia foods prepared by the Amazing Thailand restaurant in Uptown. You can support the Celestial Celebration Gala by either purchasing tickets or helping to sponsor the event. Tickets can be purchased at the website provided, and please contact Jesse Dong (j.ssedong@gmail.com) for sponsorship information.

Scholarship recipients will be considered for a paid internship at Carlson Caspers during the summer prior to entering law school and will be considered for a paid clerkship during the summers after their first and second years of law school.

Eligibility:

• Undergraduate, or higher, degree in chemistry, physics, life sciences, pharmacy, engineering, or computer science (or expect to obtain such degree in 2019)
• Accepted to or have applied to an ABA-accredited law school with intention of beginning first year of law school in the Fall of 2019. The scholarship will be paid upon proof of attendance during the first semester/quarter.
• Intend to practice intellectual property law in the Twin Cities upon graduation from law school
• Not the recipient of any other diversity scholarship awarded by another law firm

Deadline: April 20, 2019

Submission: https://www.carlsoncaspers.com/diversity-scholarship-program/

China was involved in 90 percent of all economic espionage cases handled by the Department of Justice over the last seven years, according to a report submitted last December to the Senate Intelligence Committee. This fact illustrates a new backdrop for thousands of Twin Cities S.T.E.M. (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) professionals of all ethnicities navigating career opportunities and avoiding pitfalls in the 21st Century of U.S.-China relations.

Please join us for a program focused on educating all Twin Cities S.T.E.M. professionals, academics, and students-many of whom are Asian American-on two competing and ever-emerging phenomena in the U.S. justice system: potential threats on national security and economic espionage with the ascendancy of China on the one hand, and on the other, the potential racial profiling of Asians and Asian Pacific Americans resulting in accusations, such as the cases of Dr. Wen Ho Lee, Professor Xi Xiaoxing, and hydrologist Sherry Chen.

Featured speakers will include Brian Sun, a Los Angeles lawyer who represented Dr. Lee and Peter Zeidenberg, a Washington D.C.-based attorney who represented Dr. Xi and Ms. Chen. The government perspective will be represented by Jay Bratt, the Chief of the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) of the National Security Division of the Department of Justice, who will speak about U.S. efforts to safeguard national security and curb economic espionage.

The program is co-sponsored by the University of Minnesota's China Center, the Minnesota Chapter of the Federal Bar Association's Diversity Committee, the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota's Outreach Committee, and Kingsfield Law Office.

Registration: https://chinacenter.umn.edu/events/2019/4/4/pitfalls-all-stem-professionals-new-era-us-china-relations-economic-espionage

The University of St. Thomas Law Journal, in partnership with The Infinity Project, presents: Who Decides? Picking Judges in the 21st Century.

This day-long program will examine the evolving judicial selection process at the state and federal level, and judicial diversity from a wide range of perspectives. The Infinity Project will also name the 2019 recipient of the Judge Diana Murphy Legacy Award.

Friday, March 1 (4.5 elimination of bias credits applied for)

Cost: $15

Registration at 8:30 a.m.

Program from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Wine Reception from 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.

This year's speakers will include:

Professor Linda Greenhouse (Yale Law School) Linda Greenhouse is the Knight Distinguished Journalist in Residence and Joseph M. Goldstein Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School. She is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who covered the United States Supreme Court for nearly three decades for The New York Times.

Dean Alberto Gonzales (Belmont University) Dean Gonzales was nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the United States Senate as the 80th Attorney General of the United States in February 2005 and served in that capacity until September 2007. He has worked as a partner at a major Houston law firm (Vinson & Elkins) and held government positions as a Justice on the Texas Supreme Court, Texas Secretary of State, General Counsel to the Governor of Texas and Counsel to the President of the United States.

Kim Askew (K&L Gates) Kim Askew practices in the area of complex commercial litigation, and was the first woman of color to chair of the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary. In 2005 and from 2012-2018, Lawdragon listed her as one of the "500 Leading Lawyers in America" and Benchmark has frequently named her one of the "Top 250 Women In Litigation."

Professor Brian Fitzpatrick (Vanderbilt Law School) Brian T. Fitzpatrick's research at Vanderbilt focuses on federal courts, judicial selection and constitutional law. He graduated first in his class from Harvard Law School and went on to clerk for Judge Diarmuid O'Scannlain on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ilya Shapiro (Cato Institute) Ilya Shapiro is the director of the Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies at the Cato Institute, and often speaks on constitutional issues and judicial selection. Before joining Cato, he was a special assistant/adviser to the Multi-National Force in Iraq on rule-of-law issues, and practiced at Squire Patton Boggs and Cleary Gottlieb.

Lena Zwarensteyn (The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights) Lena Zwarensteyn is the Fair Courts Campaign Director for The Leadership Conference and is a frequent speaker on the judicial selection process. She previously served as the Director of Strategic Engagement at the American Constitution Society (ACS), where she oversaw the organization's work on judicial nominations and why courts matter.

Tracey George (Vanderbilt Law School) Tracey George brings a social science perspective to a range of topics, including judges and courts, judicial selection and elections, legal education and the legal profession, and contract law and theory. She co-authored The Gavel Gap, a web-based resource highlighting the representativeness of state courts.

Lola Velazquez-Aguilu (Medtronic) Lola Velazquez-Aguilu, currently Medtronic's litigation and investigations counsel, is Minnesota's newly appointed Chair of the Commission on Judicial Selection. She has served as a member of the selection commission since 2016, and she is a past-president of The Infinity Project.

Judge Celeste Bremer (U.S. District Court) Chief Magistrate Judge Celeste Bremer has served the Southern District of Iowa since 1985. She received The Judge Diana Murphy Legacy Award in 2014 for her ongoing efforts to address inequities in the judicial system, and for encouraging countless women to serve on the bench.

Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/university-of-st-thomas-law-journalinfinity-project-cle-tickets-55737275692

Cozen O'Connor is hosting a four-part in-house counsel CLE series in 2019. The sessions are focused on various aspects of in-house practice, and a couple of the sessions will be eligible for ethics credit. The series will take place on the first floor of the City Center, APEX Conference Center, at 33 South 6^th Street.  The schedule is below: 

Part I: “Conducting Effective Internal Investigations”                             

Tuesday, February 12, 2019   (3:30pm–6:30pm)

This session will be followed by keynote remarks given by Jim Rowader, VP and General Counsel for Labor & Employment at Target. Jim will be discussing his thoughts on the current state of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.

For more information, please click here.

Part II: “Litigating Efficiently to Achieve Business Objectives”                       

Wednesday, March 13, 2019   (11:30am–1:00pm)

Part III: “Antitrust Issues for In-house Counsel: The Basics of Pricing, Distribution and Antitrust Compliance”                      

Thursday, May 9, 2019   (8:30am–10:00am)

Part IV: “Ethical Pitfalls for In-House Counsel”                                     

Wednesday, June 12, 2019   (3:30pm–6:30pm)

AscendNAAMBA is excited to invite MNAPABA to be a participant in the inaugural Make It MSP Professionals of Color Organizations Mingle! This event will bring together professionals of color organizations from across the Twin Cities and will provide an opportunity to showcase the opportunities and events each offers.  It will also feature guest speakers from the 2019 Minneapolis Final Four(r) Local Organizing Committee who will highlight their initiatives to support diversity and inclusion in the community and share exciting news about how you can get involved! 

• Connect with the Twin Cities professionals of color community and share information about your organization

• Build your organization’s brand recognition as a supporter of efforts to make the Twin Cities a prosperous and diverse community for men and women of color

• Develop new relationships that can lead to new opportunities and partnerships.

This exclusive after-hours event will take place at the James J. Hill Center in St Paul on November 29^th and will include complimentary appetizers and a hosted bar.

Please contact Vivian Chow, AscendNAAMBA MN Chapter President, at ascendnaamba.mn@gmail.com with questions and to RSVP. 

The UST Law MSBA, APALSA, and BLSA are proud to partner to bring you a presentation and roundtable discussion with John Pollock. Mr. Pollock is the Coordinator of the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel and an attorney at the Public Justice Center. Mr. Pollock and the NCCRC encourage, support, and coordinate advocacy to expand recognition and implementation of a right to counsel for low-income people in civil cases that involve basic human needs such as shelter, safety, sustenance, health, and child custody. Please plan to attend this unique event/opportunity, and appetizers will be provided.

The event will be held in the University of St. Thomas School of Law, room MSL 242 from 4-5 pm.