AABA Members:  Please join us for a lunch with Eddie Ahn, environmental justice attorney and author of the best-selling memoir "Advocate," and other public-interest lawyers.  We'll discuss careers in public interest law.  Location to be determined based on numbers.

Online Registration Closed 

Email quintoromeo@gmail.com and tkim@chuhak.com for remaining sponsorship opportunities or to ask any questions.

The Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area will be hosting its 38th Annual Awards Ceremony & Reception on Thursday, May 14, 2026, at The Exchange at 5:30 pm. This annual event recognizes esteemed colleagues in our legal community as well as our officers, board of directors, and honorary board.

Our 2026 award recipients are Uma Amuluru (In-House Counsel Leadership Award), Jason C. Kim (Law Firm Partner Leadership Award), and Kim Leung (Justice Award). 

Our emcee is Zip in-house counsel and AABA Honorary Board Member, Ann Chen.

For nearly 40 years, AABA Chicago has played a pivotal role in encouraging diversity, promoting the area’s vibrant legal community, and representing the interests of thousands of community stakeholders. Our 2025-26 year has been one of our most active and impactful programming years! In large part, we are able to pursue and advance our mission due to your generous support. As AABA Chicago hosts its 2026 Awards Ceremony, we hope that you will support us by sponsoring and attending this event.

Validated on-site parking available at Millennium Garages, Grant Park South Garage, with pedestrian access just steps from the front entrance.

Program

Cocktail Reception

5:30-6:30

Plated Dinner Begins

6:30

Awards Ceremony

6:45-7:45

Networking over evening bites courtesy of

312 Fish Market, Mister Tiger, Perilla, and Sunda;

continued open bar

7:45-10:00

Business Attire | Cultural Attire Optional

Program book is available here.

SPONSORS

Premier

Gold

King & Spalding

Silver

Polsinelli

In-Kind

Marz Community Brewing

Mister Tiger

In recognition of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the Federal Bar Association Chicago Chapter, Asian American Bar Association of Greater Chicago, and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois proudly present Love vs. Country: How One of the First Asian American Lawyers Lost and Regained Her Citizenship. The program tells the remarkable story of Sau Ung Loo Chan, who, a century ago, spent ten years fighting to reclaim the citizenship her own government had stripped away.

One of the first Asian Americans to attend Yale Law School, Chan fell in love with a man who, like her, was a U.S. citizen by birthright but, unlike her, could not prove it due to family dynamics and the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. Under the laws of that era, American women automatically lost their citizenship when they married a non-citizen, and Chan lost her citizenship when she and her husband got married. It took years of hearings and advocacy, but Chan ultimately regained citizenship for herself, her husband, and their child. Her arguments were so persuasive that immigration authorities offered her a job, and she went on to become the first Asian American woman lawyer in Hawaii, where she built a career advocating for immigrants and testified before Congress to amend U.S. immigration laws.

This in-person program features Chicago practitioners and judges performing reenactments of key moments in Chan's legal battle, giving attendees an in-depth look at her life, her legal strategy, and the lasting significance of her case. Chan's legacy speaks directly to today's conversations about birthright citizenship, justice, and civil rights, and her story remains as relevant now as it was a hundred years ago.

The program takes place on Thursday, May 28, 2026, from 4:00 to 5:00PM in the Ceremonial Courtroom of the Dirksen Federal Courthouse at 219 S Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60604. Immediately following the program, attendees are invited to stay for a reception featuring drinks and hors d'oeuvres. The event is open to the public, and attendees may receive 1.0 hours of CLE credit (pending approval).

Register at https://www.fedbarchicago.org/events-cle-opportunities/love-vs-country-how-one-first-asian-american-lawyers-lost-regained-her-citizenship