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Continue to Make Connections in Our Legal Community
A 2022 New Year’s Resolution
I had intended to write an article for the December issue of the Austin Lawyer encouraging readers to both submit nominations for the annual Pathfinders lunch that the Travis County Women Lawyers’ Association (TCWLA) organizes each January and buy a ticket to attend the lunch on Tues,, Jan. 25, 2022. And I do hope you will nominate for the Pathfinders award a woman lawyer you might know who has used her law degree in novel and groundbreaking ways. Then I received an email from Ciara Parks, the president of the Austin Black Lawyers Association (ABLA), encouraging her fellow Austin Bar affinity group presidents to invite their members to attend the annual ABLA Andrea Pair Bryant Legacy Lunch in February 2022.
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In seeing Ciara’s email, I was reminded that I met Ciara a few years ago when she graciously participated on a lawyers panel for the annual TCWLA Color of Justice event. Through my involvement in TCWLA and the Austin Bar Association, I have had not only the pleasure to make connections with attorneys in our community but also the honor to engage in philanthropic and professional efforts alongside so many wonderful lawyers and legal professionals in Austin.
The Austin Bar’s goal this year is to increase membership of both old and new members. With new attorneys moving to the area, and as the fog of pandemic isolation gradually lifts, I encourage you to adopt a New Year’s resolution to join at least one local attorney group and attend one professional event this coming winter and spring. (On my to-do list for 2022 is to join the Austin Bar’s real estate section.)
And if a financial consideration is a barrier, most organizations will provide a reduced rate upon request or a scholarship to attend more expensive events, such as Bench Bar. By joining a group or section and attending an event, you will definitely make a connection with other lawyers, and you may also make a new friend, or three! Hope to see you at an event this coming winter and spring of 2022!
CONNECT IN 2022
• TCWLA Pathfinders Lunch: Submit a nomination to president@tcwla.org by close of business Tues., Dec. 7, 2021 and buy a ticket to the Jan. 25, 2022 award lunch at tcwla.org/ events.
• TCWLA Judicial Reception: TCWLA’s annual judicial reception will be held on Feb. 10. Visit tcwla.org/events.
• ABLA Andrea Pair Bryant Legacy Lunch: Purchase a ticket to the annual lunch to be held in February 2022 at austinblacklawyers.com.
• Austin Bar Association Professional Sections: Join one of the 26 practice sections and attend a monthly CLE lunch with fellow lawyers. Go to austinbar.org for a list of the sections and click the link to join a section. AL
2018 annual Color of Justice Program: The attorney panel shared tips to succeed in the legal profession with middle and high school students. Panel members (from left) Paige Duggins-Clay, Husch Blackwell; Adriana Reyes, K & L Gates; Jennifer Hopgood, moderator, Travis County Attorney’s Office; Ciara Parks, Texas Board of Law Examiners; and Jorge Padilla, Jackson Walker.
Jennifer Hopgood is an assistant county attorney at the Travis County Attorney’s Office in the Land Use Division. She currently serves as president of the Travis County Women Lawyers’ Association and co-editor of the Austin Lawyer.
