A rallying cry for the eradication of systemic racism is resounding. But with the time ripe for action, what can lawyers do? Whose stories do we need to hear? What examples should be followed? How can we encourage those who don’t see the problem to participate in finding a solution?

Next week, the New Jersey State Bar Association is proud to convene a virtual Symposium on Race and the Law. The daylong program on Aug. 20 will be guided by renowned criminal defense and human rights attorney Raymond M. Brown, and will begin with an interview with Kevin Richardson of the “Exonerated Five.” The day will continue with more personal stories; a discussion of police conduct; an examination of the jury selection process; a conversation about bias in the legal profession; a panel on the day’s social movements and counter-movements; and a look — and a path — forward for all who desire meaningful change. Attorney General Gurbir Grewal will join us for a midday address. REGISTER HERE

The program’s objective, Brown said, is “to both inspire people who have been in the struggle for a long time and to give perspective to people who were just awakened to systemic racism and how it affects others, and to help people put this all in context…. We hope to be continuing a movement, not a moment.” 

The day’s panels include: 

Police Conduct and the Criminal Justice System: Moderated by Newark Corporation Counsel Kenyatta Stewart, the program will include Col. Patrick J. Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police; CJ Griffin, Director of the Justice Gary S. Stein Public Interest Center at Pashman Stein Walder Hayden PC; Larry Hamm, Founder and Chairman, People’s Organization for Progress; and Angela J. Hattery and Earl Smith, the co-authors of Policing Black Bodies. Our special guest for the morning, Kevin Richardson, will also join the group. 

Jury Selection: Moderated by NJSBA Trustee and noted trial attorney Brian Neary, panelists will include the Hon. Glenn A. Grant, JAD Acting Administrative Director of the Courts; Wanda Akin of Wanda M. Akin and Associates; Linda Foster, Assistant Federal Public Defender in Newark and President of the New Jersey Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; Tracey Hinson of Hinson Snipes and Reema Sethi Kareer, Assistant Prosecutor in Morris County. 

Fostering Diversity and Combating Bias in the Legal Profession: Moderated by NJSBA Trustee and Diversity Committee Co-Chair James A. Lewis V, panelists are: Melinda Colón Cox of Parker Ibrahim & Berg; Monica De Los Rios of the Casino Investment Redevelopment Authority; Lora L. Fong, Assistant Attorney General & Chief Diversity Officer at the Office of the Attorney General; Julien X. Neals, County Counsel in the County of Bergen; Ramon E. Rivera of Scarinci Hollenbeck; and Maria P. Vallejo of Chasan Lamparello Mallon & Cappuzzo and co-chair of the NJSBA Diversity Committee. 

Today’s Social Justice Movements or Counter Movements: Moderated by nationally-known author, attorney and activist Junius Williams, panelists include Amol Sinha, Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey; Linda Carter, Director of Paralegal Studies at Essex County College, Clifford D. Dawkins Jr. of Sills Cummis & Gross; Maritza Rodriguez of Rodriguez Family Law and Kabili Tayari, Director of Economic and Industrial Development in Jersey City. 

The day concludes with a focus group led by Brown and NJSBA Commission on Racial Equity in the Law Co-Chair Carolyn V. Chang that will include Justice Gary Stein (ret.) of Pashman Stein Walder Hayden; John J. Farmer Jr., Professor of law and Director of the Eagleton Institute of Politics and the Miller Center for Community Protection and Resilience at Rutgers University; Kevin G. Walsh of Gibbons PC, who is also president of the Essex County Bar Association; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Dara Govan. Additional panelists are still being confirmed. 

In addition, we’ll hear personal stories from two attorneys about their own experiences with race and the law: Family lawyer W. Lois Kahagi and RWJ Barnabas Health Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Michellene Davis. 

Panelists are still being added!

Check back on the NJICLE website to see the most recent line-up. The program runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania CLE credits are available. Learn more here. Presented in cooperation with:

• NJSBA CLE Advisory Committee
• NJSBA Diversity Committee
• NJSBA LGBT Rights Section
• NJSBA Minorities in the Profession Section
• NJSBA Women in the Profession Section
• Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association of New Jersey
• Association of Black Women Lawyers of New Jersey
• Essex County Bar Foundation
• Garden State Bar Association
• Hispanic Bar Association of New Jersey
• Middlesex County Bar Association Board for the Advancement of Racial Equity & Social Justice
• New Jersey Muslim Lawyers Association
• New Jersey Women Lawyers Association
• South Asian Bar Association of New Jersey

Program Sponsors:

• Newport Associates Development Company
• Investors Bank
• Argentino Fiore Law & Advocacy, LLC
• Bressler Amery & Ross, PC
• Brian J. Neary Law Offices
• Carmagnola & Ritardi, LLC
• Cullen and Dykman, LLP
• Fortune Title Agency
• Javerbaum Wurgaft Hicks Kahn Wilkstrom & Sinins, PC
• Lawrence Law
• McCusker Anselmi Rosen & Carvelli, PC
• O’Toole Scrivo, LLC
• Rebenack Aronow Mascolo, LLP
• Schenck, Price Smith & King, LLP
• Walsh Pizzi O’Reilly Falanda, LLP
• Wilentz Goldman & Spitzer, PA