September

Letter From the Co-Chairs

To our NTBA Community:

September is here, and with it comes a new academic year for the law school students in our membership, and new beginnings for young associates and public interest fellows and possibly others in different stages in their careers.  We thought this would be a good opportunity to share some updates regarding what’s on the horizon for the NTBA.

After hosting the Trans Law Institute at the National LGBTQ Bar’s Lavender Law Conference, we held our NTBA Annual Member Meeting on August 10.  We shared our activities from the past year, ranging from social gatherings to various forms of advocacy.  For example, co-chair Rafael Langer-Osuna represented the NTBA at this year’s ABA Annual Meeting and spoke in favor of Resolution 606, which urges governments to oppose or repeal laws and policies that target trans youth and adults.  

We will continue our efforts to advocate against policies that limit access to gender-affirming care, public accommodations, and participation in school activities.  Our public education committee is excited to collaborate with other organizations and NTBA members to provide practical solutions for folks in states with anti-trans legislation. 

This Fall, we have a few efforts planned in both the social the advocacy realm of our work.  First, NTBA is hosting a virtual Mentorship Mixer on October 26.  This is a fantastic opportunity to meet trans lawyers and law students across the country.  RSVP link to come—we hope to see you there!  

NTBA will be co-hosting a Trans Impact Litigation Convening from Nov. 1-3.  Look out for an email containing a survey to help inform the members of this convening as we discuss litigation strategy for the trans rights movement. 

Finally, we will be holding a panel discussion to discuss non-binary inclusion in the legal field, along with the co-authors of the resource guide: “Creating More Welcoming Workspaces: Practical Steps Towards Nonbinary Inclusion in the Legal Profession/. Date TBD.  

We will kick off the Winter with our SCOTUS group admissions ceremony on December 6, 2023, with a social to be held in Washington D.C. the night before.

While these events will keep us busy for the rest of this year, we’re really looking forward to working with the NTBA members who have volunteered their time to develop other activities with us.  Some ideas that were generated at the General Member Meeting include judicial education, regional meet-ups, state-based advocacy to combat anti-trans school board policies, and trans career counseling.  We’re hopeful that some of our activities that we have planned for this year will hit on these elements, and we are looking forward to working with you all to bring these community events to life.  

If you want to get involved or share more ideas with us, you can email us directly or fill out this survey: bit.ly/JoinNTBA.

Have a great month!
D and Rafael