2023
Partner and Deputy Managing Partner, New York Office
ASIAN INTERNATIONAL
Mentoring is a superpower for female Asian American lawyers, young and old
Education: JD, University of WisconsinMadison; BA, University of California, Berkeley Company Name: Robins Kaplan LLP Industry: Law Company CEO: Ronald J. Schutz Company Headquarters Location: Minneapolis, MN Number of Employees: 457 Your Location: New York, NY Words you live by: “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.” – Maya Angelou Who is your personal hero? My father, George Huang, for his ingenuity and the kindness, care, and encouragement that he gave to so many. What book are you reading? Stay True by Hua Hsu What was your first job? Selling UC Berkeley spirit apparel at home football games Favorite charity: World Central Kitchen Interests/Hobbies: Travel, tennis, photography, live theater
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2023 Second Quarter
Mentors have been crucial to my nearly two-decade career at Robins Kaplan. I have been fortunate to have had a variety of mentors, from more experienced attorneys to peers and newer attorneys, both inside and outside the firm. One of the few bright spots to come out of the pandemic was getting to participate in the Lam Mentoring Circle, which grew out of a program titled “Stronger Together: APA Women in the Legal Profession – Strategies to Support, Lead, and Advance” at the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) Fall 2020 Conference. The program featured Judy Lam, a partner at Maynard Nexsen, with six other AAPI women of different levels of practice experience, Asian ethnicities, practice settings, and sexual orientations exploring the specific challenges that they encountered in the legal profession and the strategies they employ to surmount and move past them. The moderator asked each panelist, “What will you pledge to do to support and foster Asian American women in the profession?” Lam offered to host a mentoring circle. Lam’s mentoring circle began with the original seven panelists from the AABANY panel and added five more women. Prior to each quarterly meeting, Lam provides one or two questions for us to discuss during the meeting. For the circle to build trust, we agreed to keep the discussions confidential, to respect each other’s differences and differing opinions, and to attend as our schedules allowed. This openness and flexibility makes for a very effective and sustainable group, and for engagement in authentic discussions. The Lam Mentoring Circle does not only formally mentor from top down, but also encourages reverse mentoring—where the younger members mentor our more experienced members. More than two years after its formation, the Circle remains strong. I am grateful for the opportunity to connect with such a diverse and open group of AAPI women. Recently at Robins Kaplan, the Attorneys of Color Resource Group launched mentoring pods to foster more engagement, both personal and professional, across offices and practice groups. Our mentoring pods bring together attorneys across different offices, practice areas, and experience levels in small groups of about five with the intention of building deeper relationships and trust across the community, while also providing professional and personal support and resources. The mentoring pods also meet quarterly to discuss everything from personal reactions and issues outside the firm, to professional development and support networks for issues internal to the firm. I have the honor of heading one of the mentoring pods at Robins Kaplan and my experience with the Lam Mentoring Circle has directly influenced how I lead the pod, as well as how I approach my other roles at the firm.
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AWARD
Annie Huang