Committee post: BRIDGES - Legal Community Outreach Committee (LCOC) and Namita Thakker 

I am a member of both Lawyers Club of San Diego and the South Asian Bar Association of San Diego (SABA) because we all need community. The people I’ve met through Lawyers Club and SABA are supportive, kind, fun people. As a woman of color, I appreciate each organization’s commitment to inclusion in the profession. Both organizations seek to support historically under-supported members of the legal community through insightful programming and meaningful networking opportunities, and advocate for progressive change to the legal profession.
  
Last year, SABA’s former president Tarina Mand spearheaded SABA-SD’s launch of the Equal Pay Transparency Initiative, a free, public survey of anonymously submitted salary data. The pay gap between various demographic groups is substantial, and pay transparency allows underpaid individuals to advocate for themselves by bringing concrete data points to their employers. SABA’s aim through this project is to increase retention rates among underrepresented groups in the legal community, thus increasing diversity among all rungs of the professional ladder. SABA invites and encourages all of you to participate.
 
Under current president Mytili Bala’s leadership, SABA is hosting an upcoming event on access to justice issues in the context of fluency in English, and “Chai Chat” networking events to foster law students and young lawyers meaningful connect with judges or other esteemed members of the community. In addition, we continue to partner with other local diversity bar organizations to promote their events.
 
SABA of San Diego includes legal professionals identifying as South Asian and anyone else interested in supporting our programming and goals. We are a very inclusive group, and I invite you to visit us at https://sabasandiego.org/ or at one of our upcoming events.   
 
Lawyers Club of San Diego’s Legal Community Outreach Committee (LCOC) seeks to build membership, engagement, sponsorship, and collaboration with San Diego law firms, public agencies, and fellow diversity bar organizations advancing women in law and society. To help us understand ways to bridge Lawyers Club of San Diego with your organization, please email LCOC Co-Chair Teodora D. Purcell.
  
Ms. Namita Thakker is a business transactional attorney and likes to spend time outdoors.