Welcome to the Los Angeles Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.

Our chapter has over 450 members and is one of the largest in the country. We are committed to serving the needs of federal practitioners, judges, and courts, as well as the Central District of California community as a whole. We were chartered in 1937 and are one of the oldest chapters of the national Federal Bar Association. Our membership reflects all facets of the federal legal community, and includes judges, civil practitioners, criminal defense attorneys, prosecutors, transactional lawyers, attorneys specializing in intellectual property, labor and employment, bankruptcy, environmental, civil rights, class actions, and a broad array of court administrators, administrative agency lawyers and academics.

FBA-Los Angeles organizes and hosts educational programs and social functions to advance federal jurisprudence and provide a networking forum for our members. Many of our events are at the courthouses of the Central District and most feature active participation from judicial officers. Our Board of Directors includes many of the sitting judges in the Central District and we serve a leadership role on issues that impact the federal courts and legal community both locally and nationally. Our Younger Lawyers Division and mentoring program are dedicated to serving the needs of newer lawyers. We also have a substantial pro-bono program and are proud of our work with the pro se clinic in the District.

The new federal courthouse opened in vibrant downtown Los Angeles in October 2016. The state-of-the-art facility at 350 West First Street ensures that the judiciary and community have modern technology to facilitate the business of the court. We hope the impressive new courthouse also serves as a beacon for the federal bar to continue its effort to ensure justice is provided to everyone in the Central District of California.

If you are not already a member of the Federal Bar Association, I hope you will join the Los Angeles Chapter of the FBA here: http://www.fbala.org/Join.php. We welcome your participation and involvement in the chapter.

I look forward to seeing you at upcoming events.

Warmest regards,

Matthew W. Close
President, FBA-Los Angeles