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About Affiliate Bar Associations Orange County Korean American Bar Association

Orange County Korean American Bar Association

OCKABA Statement Updated April 2024

OCKABA was established in 2005 to foster meaningful relationships among Korean American lawyers and law students, to provide pro bono services to the Orange County Korean American community, and to promote the appointment of Korean American judges. Over the past eighteen years, with the help and support of OCBA, other affiliate bars, and the greater legal community, OCKABA has grown significantly as an organization. OCKABA is proud to now have three Korean American judges serving on the Orange County Superior Court bench (two of whom joined in 2023) and a robust mentorship program with over 100 participants.

OCKABA is currently led by President Mimi Ahn of Kahana Feld LLP, President-Elect Mandy Kim of McDermott Will & Emery, Treasurer Jonathan Shin of Shin Law Group, Secretary Logan Park of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, and eighteen members of the board of directors. Our officers and directors are leaders and experts in their fields, and they regularly attend and represent OCKABA at numerous events such as other affiliate bar installation galas, IAKL Annual Conference, annual NAPABA Convention, and Cal-APABA Annual Conference, just to name a few.

Last year, OCKABA’s sold out its 18th Annual Installation Dinner and Joanne Lee Molinaro, Korean American partner and trial lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP and New York Times best-selling author and James Beard Award winner, was the keynote speaker and recipient of the Leadership Award, and Judge Richard Lee of the Orange County Superior Court, long-time supporter and member of OCKABA, was the recipient of the Judge of the Year Award. In addition, Junha Baek of Chapman Law received a bar stipend to support his preparation for the bar exam.

During the 2023-2024 term, OCKABA hosted/sponsored many events including:

  • Summer Joint Mixer (OC APA Bars);
  • OCKABA-IAKL Joint Mixer;
  • Family picnic for OCKABA members with Korean lunch boxes;
  • Joint top golf event with KABA-SC;
  • Halloween Mentorship Mixer;
  • APXLSA Night Market;
  • Adopt-a-Family Event with TMBA
  • Holiday party celebrating friendship with traditional Korean food;
  • Mentorship mixers providing opportunities for mentors and mentees to connect;
  • Board retreat in Temecula; and
  • Joint Happy Hour to Celebrate Appointment of Judge June An with UCI Korea Law Center (University of California, Irvine Korea Law Center), KABA- SC (Korean American Bar Association Southern California), and KABA-SD (Korean American Bar Association San Diego).

We have many upcoming events and look forward to connecting with you at our events. For inquiries about upcoming events, membership, or sponsorship information, please contact us at admin@ockaba.org or visit our website at www.ockaba.org. Many OCKABA events are completely free for its members.

Recent News & Event Photos

For more information about upcoming events, visit www.oc-kaba.org.