North American South Asian Bar Association (NASABA)

In late 2001, a handful of local South Asian bar association leaders from across the country started meeting to discuss the possibility of a national South Asian bar organization. Despite never having met each other, they recognized the value of a national organization and immediately set out to form the National South Asian Bar Association. A little over a year later, in early 2003, NASABA was formed.

It didn’t take very long for the news of NASABA to spread throughout the country. NASABA held its first national conference on June 18-24, 2004 in Santa Monica, California with over 350 South Asian lawyers from across the country. The theme of the conference was simple yet powerful: “Oneness – Uniting South Asian Lawyers Across America.” By then, NASABA had already grown from 8 founding chapters to 16 member chapters across throughout the country. This initial gathering laid the foundation for building a national organization to unite an ever-increasing body of South Asian lawyers.

In its short existence, NASABA has achieved much for South Asian lawyers and the South Asian community. The following are just a few of NASABA’s achievements over the years:

NASABA expanded its reach to 24 local chapters including local South Asian bar chapters in Ottawa, Vancouver and Toronto. As a result of its expansion outside the country, NASABA became the North American South Asian Bar Association
NASABA formed an Advisory Counsel (NAC), the very first unified gathering of the senior-most South Asian bar in the United States and Canada. The NAC is charged with providing guidance and input on NASABA's long-term goals and other sensitive projects
Together with other national South Asian organizations, NASABA meets regularly with representatives from the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, and other federal agencies to discuss issues affecting the South Asian community, including domestic surveillance, the Patriot Act, immigrant registration, hate crimes and racial profiling
NASABA helped facilitate the passage in Congress of a private bill of relief known as the Waqar Hassan Bill (H.R. Con. Res. 867, 108th Cong. (2004)). Mr. Hassan – a Pakistani immigrant – was a victim of a post-9/11 hate crime murder. As a result of his murder, his wife and four daughters faced being deported back to Pakistan. With the help of NASABA and other organizations, Congress passed a bill giving Mr. Hassan’s family permanent residency in the United States
NASABA has several active committees that serve various interests of South Asian lawyers and the South Asian community

The following are just a few of our committees’ recent achievements:

NASABA’s Judicial Evaluation Committee recently witnessed three of its South Asian lawyers being appointed as judges: the Hon. Sabita Singh, the Hon. Neera Lall Walsh, and the Hon. Maria Kuriakos-Ciesil
NASABA’s Criminal Justice Committee developed a Convenience Store Outreach Program, the first effort of its kind to educate South Asian convenience store owners and employees on the laws regulating the sale of precursors to methamphetamines. This program has been replicated in several cities throughout the country.The Committee also monitors acts of hate crimes and racial profiling in local communities and works with its local South Asian bar associations to outreach to local law enforcement
NASABA’s Pro Bono Committee helped prepare various court motions for defense attorneys representing South Asian convenient store owners being prosecuted in North Georgia as part of the Department of Justice’s Operation Meth Merchant
NASABA’s Immigration Committee assisted in obtaining Temporary Protection Status to individuals facing deportation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives after the tsunami that crippled those countries in 2005
NASABA’s Amicus Committee has maintained a vigilant overview of any and all appellate matters that are of interest to and affect the rights of the South Asian community. This committee has taken an interest in Karen Leclerc v. Daniel Webb, et al., which is currently up for certiorari before the United States Supreme Court. The case addresses the rights of non-immigrants to obtain licenses to practice law. NASABA intends to file an amicus brief if certiorari is granted
The NASABA Foundation has raised over $60,000 for pro bono grants to those organizations and individuals providing legal aid and service to the South Asian community
Since its initial conference, NASABA conducted two more national conventions, one in Washington, D.C. (2005) and another in Atlanta (2006), each year with increasing participation and sponsorship
To some, it may be hard to believe that so much has happened in four short years of NASABA’s existence. To us, it’s the intended result of achieving “Oneness,” as we set out to do during our first national conference