Thursday, October 21, 2021
5:00 P.M. – 7:00 P.M.
San Mateo County History Museum
2200 Broadway
Redwood City, CA 94063

The Diversity Committee is proud to present its award-winning 13^th Annual Speaker Series.  This year, our annual Speaker Series event will be conducted live at the “The Old Courthouse,” on Thursday, October 21, 2021, from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. You are invited to join us in person or virtually! 

Our Guest Speakers this year included, Presiding Judge Leland Davis, III, Justice Teri L. Jackson, and Judge Erica R. Yew.

Presiding Judge Leland Davis, III received a B.A. Degree in Economics in 1980 from Stanford University and his J.D. Degree from Boalt Hall School of Law in 1983. Judge Davis got appointed to the San Mateo Superior Court bench by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2010, filling a vacancy created by the retirement of the Honorable Carol. L. Mittlesteadt. During his time on the bench, Judge Davis served as a Trial Judge, then as a Criminal Presiding Judge, and Civil Grand Jury Judge. From 2016 until 2018, Judge Davis served on the Appellate Panel and served as a Criminal Supervising Judge from 2017 to 2018. In 2019, he became the Assistant Presiding Judge and began his first term of Presiding Judge this year.

Justice Teri L. Jackson received her B.A. in 1977 from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she majored in politics. She earned her J.D. in 1980 from Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. Justice Jackson was appointed to the California Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, in November 2019 by Governor Gavin Newsom. The Commission on Judicial Appointments confirmed her appointment in January 2020. She is the first female African-American justice on the state’s First District Court of Appeal. Justice Jackson serves as an associate justice in Division Three. As of July 9th, the Governor nominated Justice Jackson for the position as the Presiding Justice, Div. 5, 1DCA.

Judge Erica R. Yew was appointed to the Santa Clara County Superior Court in 2001 as that court’s first female Asian American Pacific Islander judge.  She has served on the California Judicial Council, the Commission on Judicial Performance (for which she served as Chair) and the NAPABA Judicial Council (for which she served as president) among other entities.  Currently, she serves on the Supreme Court Committee on Judicial Ethics Opinions and the California Access to Justice Commission.  She is newly appointed to the board of the National Center of State Courts, and she will join the California Judges Association Board later this year. 

The following recognitions will be made at the event:

Les Williams Award
The Diversity Award recognizes an individual or organization who has demonstrated a meaningful and consistent commitment to increasing and maintaining diversity in San Mateo County at all levels of the legal profession. There is still time to nominate others who deserve recognition for their commitment to promoting equality. 

Nancy de Ita Scholarship
The Scholarship is given to an incoming/current law student, or recent graduate who has not passed the bar exam to encourage and support their commitment to the legal profession and diversity in our community.

This event is also going to be streaming live via zoom. If you wish to attend virtually, please note that the event will be broadcasted from 5:45pm – 7:00pm.

Cost of Attendance: This event is FREE for SMCBA members . For non-SMCBA members, the cost of attendance is $40 (in-person) and $20 (virtually).
1 Hour of Elimination of Bias MCLE will be provided upon request for an additional $10.

Sponsorship Opportunity: Become an Event Sponsor for $500. Sponsorship includes: SMCBA goody bag, Recognition in Event Announcements, and Visual Recognition (Firm Logo) at Event. For more information about sponsorships, please contact us at Events@smcba.org.