President’s Message: Firsts

After the Court rises for the summer recess and Justice Stephen Breyer’s retirement becomes effective, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson will become the first former federal public defender and first female African American jurist to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. It is against this milestone that the FBA presents this edition of The Federal Lawyer, which spotlights “firsts” in the legal profession. It is my privilege and honor to serve as the FBA’s first Asian-American national president, and in an interview with Kiera Murphy of the FBA’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee (starting on page 19), I explain what that means to me—and more importantly, what that might mean for others. In addition, in the pages that follow ( 21 through 31), we hear the stories of 11 other lawyers who are or were trailblazers in their communities. As Justice Jackson emphasized during her confir-mation hearing, trailblazers stand on the shoulders of others who preceded them. I feel the same, and I hope this special edition of The Federal Lawyer will help in-spire you to lift up all lawyers (and lawyers to be) with promise. “Equal Justice under Law” are not just words written above the main entrance to the Supreme Court; they are a call to action and require collective effort to become reality.

About the Author

Anh Le Kremer is the current President of the FBA and former business litigator at Stinson, LLP. She is currently the chief operating officer and general counsel for Nystrom & Associates, a behavioral health organization headquartered in Minnesota.

About the FBA

Founded in 1920, the Federal Bar Association is dedicated to the advancement of the science of jurisprudence and to promoting the welfare, interests, education, and professional development of all attorneys involved in federal law. Our more than 16,000 members run the gamut of federal practice: attorneys practicing in small to large legal firms, attorneys in corporations and federal agencies, and members of the judiciary. The FBA is the catalyst for communication between the bar and the bench, as well as the private and public sectors. Visit us at fedbar.org to learn more.