an Affiliate Chapter of the Nati

President’s Quarterly Report - Spring 2008

Dear Crawford Members:

Spring is here! We hope that you were able to join us for at least a few of the programs and events that were held in the first quarter of the year. To start, we collaborated with CAPABA, CHBA and SABAC to co-sponsor an extremely informative panel discussion on "Becoming a Judge in Connecticut: The Judicial Selection Process" (Jan. 15). Attorney John Rose, one of our Founding Members, gave welcoming remarks, followed by Judge Barbara Quinn, who made introductory comments on behalf of the Connecticut Judicial Branch. Our esteemed panelists were Attorney Anna Ficeto, Governor's Counsel; Attorney Thomas O'Dea, Chairman of the Judicial Selection Commission; Judge Nina Elgo; Judge Antonio Robaina; and Judge Angela Robinson. The panel was moderated by Attorney Preston Tisdale and drew more than 50 attendees. Special thanks are due to Crawford Board Member Moy Ogilvie who took the lead for Crawford in organizing this fantastic event!!!

Next, we celebrated with the Hartford County Bar Association at a reception noting the historic occasion of Concurrent Women Presidents of seven bar associations in Connecticut, including Crawford, an event which drew more than 100 attendees (Jan. 30). We also participated in a weekend Career Panel for law students at UCONN Law School (Feb. 2).

The Honorable Judge Vanessa L. Bryant, our 2007 Crawford Award recipient, then hosted our Quarterly Membership Meeting at the U.S. District Court in Hartford (Feb. 21). During the meeting, she presented a training program on the Connecticut Superior Court Diversionary Programs. Special thanks are extended to Tokunbo Akinbajo and Natalie Braswell for their leadership and assistance with the training program! Judge Bryant, we cannot thank you enough for your sharing your knowledge and inviting us to host the meeting at the courthouse. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

The following week, Crawford co-hosted a Judicial Branch Employment Panel at UCONN Law School (Feb. 27). Opening remarks were presented by Judge Barbara Quinn and our esteemed panelists included Chief State's Attorney Kevin Kane, Chief Public Defender Susan Storey, Tais Ericson, Holly Sellers and Alberta Slattery. A reception immediately following the program was dedicated to the late Grace Cavero-Feliu, CHBA Founding Member and former Public Defender. UCONN Law School Dean Jeremy Paul and Susan Storey provided remarks at the reception.

The following month, we attended the Lawyers Collaborative for Diversity Annual Meeting (Mar. 10) and co-sponsored the CBA/YLS Diversity Award Dinner honoring Dean Harold Koh of the Yale Law School and Hartford State's Attorney Gail Hardy (Mar. 12). We then held Crawford elections at our final Quarterly Membership Meeting for the bar year (Apr. 17).

The culmination of the 2007-2008 bar year was unquestionably the 2008 Crawford Annual Dinner! For those who missed it, we honored The Founding Members of Crawford with our 2008 Crawford Award before a packed ballroom of 300 people; accepting the award on behalf of this illustrious group of pioneers was Crawford's first president, Joseph A. Moniz, Esq. (Apr 24). The Honorable Denise L. Nappier, State Treasurer, delivered the keynote address. We also gave monetary awards to three deserving law students: Fallon DePina, Jane Roberte-Sampeur and LeGrand Lindor. Extra special thanks are extended to the dynamic and dedicated members of the dinner committee: Attorneys Mychal S. Boyd (Chair), Kirkandre Durrant, Jocelyn Griffin, Luretha McClendon, Kevin Rasch, Bryan Watson, and Peter Wilson, Jr.; our generous sponsors; and all of our guests. Thank you for your commitment to Crawford!!!

Although the term for Crawford's new Executive Board just began, we have already been busy with activity. Earlier this month, the Connecticut Supreme Court, Chief Justice Chase T. Rogers, honored eight representatives of Connecticut's minority bar associations, including Crawford members Vanessa Roberts, Moy Ogilvie, and Toni Smith-Rosario, with the 2008 Law Day Award, for our collective efforts this past year to increase diversity within the Judicial Branch (May 1). We also held an Exam Preparation Session for 1L students at UCONN Law School (May 1), attended the NAPABA Northeast Regional Conference in Norwalk, Connecticut (May 3), and attended the Lawyers Collaborative for Diversity presentation of the Edwin Archer Randolph Award (May 7). The distinguished 2008 Edwin Archer Randolph Award Recipient was none other than the Honorable Alvin W. Thompson, United States District Judge for the District of Connecticut. Judge Thompson's remarks during the ceremony were poignant and inspiring. What a truly deserving honoree!

Upcoming Events

Please mark your calendars: This week, there are two events that I hope many of you will attend. The first is a symposium on "Why Women Walk? The Female Brain Drain from the Profession and How to Stop It" being held at Quinnipiac University School of Law in Hamden on Thursday, May 15, 2008, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Crawford is a financial contributor to the symposium and a flyer is attached for more information. We look forward to seeing many of you there.

The second is a Reception for New Attorneys, those candidates who passed the February 2008 Bar Examination, being held this Friday, May 16, 2008 at the Museum of Connecticut History located in the Connecticut Supreme Court Building in Hartford. The reception will begin immediately following the morning ceremony which starts at 10:30 a.m. at the Belding Theatre of the Bushnell, 166 Capitol Avenue in Hartford. There is no cost for you to attend this event and we hope to see you there.

Also, consider attending the following upcoming conferences:

Connecticut Bar Association Annual Meeting and Conference, June 9, Hartford, CT (www.ctbar.org)
American Bar Association National Conference for the Minority Lawyer, June 26-27, San Jose, CA (http://www.abanet.org/buslaw/meetings/2008/minoritylawyer/register.shtml#site)
National Bar Association 83rd Annual Convention & Exhibits, July 26-August 2, Houston, TX (www.nationalbar.org)

Lastly, I will close with a special word about Crawford Committees. While your Executive Board is busy preparing for the year ahead, we need YOU on our committees to assist! Crawford's reputation for excellence can only be maintained with the collective effort of its membership. The old adage, "Many hands make light work," rings especially true for us. Please join us. I have attached our new list of Committee Chairs and descriptions, so that you can sign up directly, by email, for those committees of interest to you. We look forward to getting you more involved.

Vanessa D. Roberts, President
George W. Crawford Black Bar Association
P.O. Box 2715
Hartford, CT 06146-2715
Tel 860.275.6752
Fax 860.560.5956
vroberts@mccarter.com

"Crawford is a volunteer, non-profit, active state-wide affiliate of the National Bar Association. Join us as we strengthen Crawford's legacy and ensure its vitality for future generations."