
June 9, 2008
DOR
Commissioner Navjeet K. Bal Awarded NASABA 2008 Cornerstone
Award
The South Asian Bar Association of Greater Boston (“SABA
GB”), a chapter of the North American South Asian Bar
Association (“NASABA”), congratulates Commissioner
Navjeet K. Bal on her recent nomination and award of a 2008
NASABA Cornerstone Award. Commissioner Bal will receive her
award in person at the 2008 NASABA annual convention to be held
this year in Chicago, Illinois June 27-29, 2008 www.nasabaconvention.org
The Cornerstone Award is granted to individuals who, among
other attributes, “serv[e] the legal interests of the
South Asian community and the community at large [and] encourag[e]
greater participation by the South Asian community in the legal
profession and the government.” The other NASABA 2008
Cornerstone awardees are: Navneet Chugh, Esq., founder of NASABA;
Steven Mayo, Esq., Executive Director of the Institute for the
Study and Development of Legal Systems; the Hon. Rena Marie
Van Tine, Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County,
Illinois; and Emilie Ninan, Esq., President of the South Asian
Bar Association of Delaware and partner at Ballard Spahr Andrews
& Ingersoll, LLP.
In February of this year, Commissioner Bal was appointed by
Governor Patrick’s administration to lead the Commonwealth
of Massachusetts Department of Revenue. Commissioner Bal’s
position is among the highest held by a South Asian in Massachusetts
state government. Prior to becoming Commissioner, Ms. Bal worked
for the law firm of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and
Popeo from September 1989 until April 2007, specializing in
public finance, state disclosure issues, state and federal tax
law and structured financial transactions. Ms. Bal founded Mintz
Levin’s Domestic Violence Project in 1990, is a board
member and former chairperson of the Legal Advocacy and Resource
Center in Boston, and served from 2003-2005 on the executive
committee for the statewide planning committee on delivery of
legal services chaired by retired Chief Justice Herbert Wilkins,
a group which worked to reorganize the delivery of legal services
in Massachusetts.
“It is a particularly proud moment for Boston’s
South Asian legal community,” commented Natasha Varyani,
Vice President of the SABA GB. “Considering Commissioner
Bal’s long-time commitment to public service and all that
she has accomplished thus far, it is difficult to imagine a
more fitting recipient for this award.”
Commissioner Bal’s recent appointment and receipt of
this award exemplify the strides being made by South Asians
in the legal community. For its part, SABA GB will continue
to support the advancement of South Asians to leadership positions
by providing mentoring and networking opportunities among its
members and other affinity communities. For additional information
please visit
www.sabagb.org or contact Samia Kirmani, President, South
Asian Bar Association of Greater Boston, at kirmanis@jacksonlewis.com.
For more information on, or to register for the upcoming NASABA
convention, please visit www.nasabaconvention.org.
May 14, 2008

Let’s
get real about diversity
To commemorate diversity month, on April 24, 2008, the affinity
bar associations in Massachusetts hosted “Lets Get Real
About Diversity” - an event designed to allow participants
of all minority organizations to candidly discuss diversity
issues in the Massachusetts legal community and ways we can
work together to improve it. Over seventy-five people were in
attendance for the event, spearheaded by the South Asian Bar
Association of Greater Boston (“SABA GB”), and organized
by the Asian American Lawyers Association of Massachusetts (“AALAM”),
the Massachusetts Lesbian and Gay Bar Association (“MLGBA”),
the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association (“MBLA”),
and the Massachusetts Association of Hispanic Attorneys (“MAHA”).
In addition, the Boston Bar Association Diversity Leadership
Task Force co-hosted the event. This event marked the first
time that SABAGB, AALAM, MAHA, MBLA and MLGBA all gathered together
to discuss an issue of significance for each organization, and
the legal community in Massachusetts.
Panelists included Edward Cheng, partner at Sherin & Lodgin;
Carlos Perez-Albuerne, partner at Choate Hall & Stewart;
Robert Cooper, Senior Counsel at OneUnited Bank; Annapoorni
Sankaran, shareholder at Greenberg Traurig; and Vickie Henry,
partner at Foley Hoag. The discussion was moderated by Christina
E. Miller, Chief of District Courts and Community Prosecutions
at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Ms.
Miller invited the audience and panelists to weigh in on scenarios
often encountered by diverse attorneys, including instances
of overt and subtle discrimination, pressures upon diverse associates
to participate in firm diversity committees and how diverse
attorneys can best fit in with law firm culture. The panelists
openly discussed their past experiences and provided their perspectives
on handling difficult issues in the workplace.
Panelists and guests attended a reception following the panel
discussion. Attendees noted the importance of the event and
how it will serve as a stepping stone for future events and
helping the legal community to evolve. More importantly, attendees
commented on how the event and the reception allowed minority
attorneys to discuss important issues in a familiar and safe
environment, and allowed them to meet and develop important
relationships with minority members of the bar. Taruna Garg,
Esq., Clerk of SABA GB commented, “I was pleased by how
long people stayed at the event. With members of so many of
the minority bars present, it was amazing to listen to the excitement
and brainstorming for future events, and ways we can all better
serve our communities. In addition, as both majority and minority
bar members, we all realized that we are working towards the
same goal and collaboration is the most effective way to achieve
it.” Bar leaders hope that this panel discussion was the
start of an important dialogue in the Massachusetts legal community
and will be presenting future events to take the discussion
to the next level.
SABA GB is a chapter of the North American South Asian Bar
Association and is an organization dedicated to supporting and
promoting the advancement of attorneys and law students of South
Asian heritage and serving the legal needs of the South Asian
community at large. For additional information please visit
www.sabagb.org or contact Samia Kirmani, President, South Asian
Bar Association of Greater Boston, at kirmanis@jacksonlewis.com.
April 24,2008

South
Asian Bar Association Of Greater Boston Announces Affiliated
Bar Status With The Massachusetts Bar Association
Nutter, McClennan & Fish
6:30 p.m.
The South Asian Bar Association of Greater Boston (“SABA
GB”), a chapter of the North American South Asian Bar
Association, recently announced that the Executive Management
Board of the Massachusetts Bar Association (“MBA”)
unanimously approved SABA GB’s application to become an
MBA affiliated bar association. The MBA affiliate bars assist
the MBA in the furtherance of its mission, policies and activities.
There are currently twenty-six such associations, each with
a representative on the MBA’s governing House of Delegates.
Becoming an affiliated bar of the MBA has been a SABA GB goal
and serves as formal recognition of the efforts by SABA GB to
create strong relationships with local majority and affinity
bar associations in Massachusetts. SABA GB expects that MBA
affiliated bar status will provide SABA GB with a greater voice
in the Massachusetts legal community and further enable SABA
GB to benefit from the experience and expertise of the MBA.
SABA GB looks forward to working with the MBA and the other
MBA affiliated bars to continue initiatives to improve the diversity
of the legal community in Massachusetts.
Samia M. Kirmani, President of SABA GB commented, “SABA
GB is of the firm belief that issues of diversity in the legal
profession are most effectively addressed as a group effort.
We believe that each bar association can represent and bring
a unique voice to the discussion so that we can better understand
each other and the communities we serve. That said, only as
a team can we make a real difference in the landscape of our
profession. Thus, we are honored to have become an affiliated
bar of the MBA and look forward to furthering our collective
goals.”
To that end, in celebration of Diversity month, SABA GB is
co-hosting a joint event with some of its fellow affiliated
bar organizations. The event will feature a panel of attorneys
who will speak candidly about diversity in the Boston legal
community, as well as a networking reception for attendees.
It will be held at Nutter, McClennan & Fish on Thursday,
April 24th at 6:30 p.m. To RSVP, please E-mail Maya Sethi at
MSethi@nutter.com.
SABA GB is a voluntary bar association dedicated to the advancement
and development of attorneys and law students who are interested
in issues affecting the South Asian community in Massachusetts.
Through professional development activities, community outreach,
education programs, legal services efforts, and networking opportunities,
SABA GB benefits not only its membership but the community at
large.
For more information about SABA GB please visit www.sabagb.org
or contact Samia M. Kirmani, President, SABA GB, at 617-367-0025
or at kirmanis@jacksonlewis.com.
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