What an exciting time!

BWLA is hosting its 35th Anniversary Fundraiser Gala on Saturday, May 21, 2022 from 6pm-12am at the Epiphany Center for the Arts! It will be a beautiful and elegant evening of dinner, dancing, and celebrating BWLA's Founders, Past Presidents, members and supporters while raising funds to support scholarships for minority law students in the Greater Chicago area.

Take a look at this video to hear from some of our past scholarship recipients about how BWLA's Scholarship Fund has supported their success.

I personally invite and encourage you all to attend what will be an unforgettable night for an incredible cause!

Tickets and tables are on sale now and sponsorship opportunities are available.

Sincerely,

BWLA Member General Ticket: $200

Non BWLA Member General Ticket: $250

Get your tickets while they last!

Email us for sponsorship opportunities at administrator@bwla.org

On March 21, 2022, BWLA Past President Kalia Coleman participated in a panel discussion on WTTW-Channel 11's Chicago Tonight. They discussed the historic confirmation hearings of U.S. Supreme Court Nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.

BWLA President Nakhia Crossley represented BWLA on WGN's podcast Legal Takeoff during their "Black Women and the Law" roundtable discussion on March 22, 2022 at Fame Supper Club. Co-host Rich Lenkov, capital member at Bryce Downey & Lenkov, moderated the incredible panel of Dean Cassandra L. Hill, Northern Illinois College of Law; Judge Sharon J. Coleman, U.S. District Court; Toi W. Hutchinson, President & CEO, Marijuana Policy Project; and Kori S. Carew, Chief Inclusion & Diversity Officer at Seyfarth Shaw LLP. You can view the taping here."

Click here to download the application.

Click here to register!

Click here to register!

Click here to register!

On March 4-6, 2022, BWLA's Member Services Committee hosted the first "Fun on the Slopes with BWLA" in beautiful Lake Geneva, WI. Attendees enjoyed a weekend of events including a fun night of games, karaoke and dancing. Members also relaxed in the spa and took to the slopes for a day of skiing at the Grand Geneva Resort and Spa.

BWLA joined The Cook County Bar Association to present Beyond the Bag: Securing Your Financial Future on Tuesday, March 8, 2022. Financial Advisors Raketa Webb and Aleatha Wilson of Northwestern Mutual spoke to attendees about financial planning in honor of Women's History Month.

On Saturday, March 12, 2022, BWLA President Nakhia Crossley was a panelist at the UIC-BLSA's Black Women's Legal Summit "We Are the Light: The Power of Our Presence." Nakhia was joined by the Honorable Sophia Atcherson, Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County; Shameeka Quallo, Associate General Counsel at The Chicago Cubs; Ariana Taylor, Associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meager & Flom LLP; and Olaide Adeniran, Assistant State's Attorney at the Lake County State's Attorney's Office.

On Saturday, March 19, 2022, BWLA President Nakhia Crossley hosted the annual Founders and Past Presidents Brunch at the new Lirica restaurant inside the Sable Hotel at Navy Pier. Guests networked and shared fond memories and stories about BWLA.

On March 29, 2022, the Northern Illinois University Black Law Students Association (BLSA) sponsored the Black Women Achieving in Law Panel. BWLA President Nakhia Crossley joined NIU College of Law Dean Cassandra L. Hill, Judge Marian Perkins, Natalie Howse, and CCBA President - Elect Natasha Jenkins, for a discussion on the significance of President Biden’s commitment to nominate a Black woman to the United States Supreme Court and the challenges facing Black women in law. 

Nominations for the 2022-2023 BWLA Board of Directors will open on Wednesday, April 20, 2022. To be eligible to participate in the upcoming election as a voter or candidate, a BWLA member must be financially active during the 2021-2022 bar year as of Friday, April 15, 2022.

Click here to renew your membership for the 2021-2022 bar year in order to participate in this election. Not sure if you are a current member? Email administrator@bwla.org to confirm your status.

On, Thursday, March 31, 2022, BWLA Corresponding Secretary Era Laudermilk participated in a discussion with the Office of the Illinois Attorney General to learn about the Office's diversity and recruitment efforts.

In order to support its commitment to advancing diversity, the Office of the Illinois Attorney General is seeking applications from BWLA members. The Office currently has several job opportunities and seeks to increase the diversity of its office through this process. You can view all of their current vacancies here.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the attorney hiring director, Thor Inouye, at thor.inouye@ilag.gov. For those interested, please forward your resume and cover letter to administrator@bwla.org by April 29th.

Click here to join the fun! 

Please fill out this survey by April 22, 2022 if you have any personal, professional, or other first-hand experience with the Cook County judicial candidates on the Associate Judges List or Primary Candidate List seeking election this year, as the BWLA JEC Committee will soon be participating in investigations and interviews.

If you have questions, please email Weeya Young, BWLA Recording Secretary and JEC

Liaison, at Weeya.Young@gmail.com.

Congratulations to Heather Renée Adams on her new position as Labor & Employment Shareholder at Roetzel & Andress!

Congratulations to Kelly Carter on being named a cohort member of the New Bridge Program by Atlantik-Brucke e.V.!

Congratulations to Ndidi Elue on her new position as Lead Counsel, Artificial Intelligence at Meta!

Do you or someone you know have an achievement that you'd like us to highlight in our monthly newsletter? We want to celebrate our members! Send your latest achievement addressed to BWLA Corresponding Secretary, Era Laudermilk, at administrator@bwla.org.

BWLA constantly receives new employment opportunities that our members may be interested in. The ever expanding list has become too lengthy to share here, so please be sure to visit the BWLA Job Board to view all current employment opportunities!