Law Day Celebration

The 2024 Law Day Celebration welcomed guests from throughout the Boston legal community to celebrate the rule of law, the role of lawyers in our community and the strength of our legal network. Gathering at historic Boston Symphony Hall, attendees enjoyed an exceptional cocktail reception, live entertainment, and an inspirational program.

About the Event

Thursday, June 13, 2024
5:30-9:30pm
Boston Symphony Hall

The Boston Bar Association’s annual Law Day Celebration features an evening of insight and inspiration. Welcoming guests from throughout the Boston legal community, this networking event is an unparalleled celebration of the rule of law, the role of lawyers in our community, and the strength of the legal network in Boston!

 

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Danielle Allen is a renowned scholar in political philosophy, ethics, and public policy. She currently serves as the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University and Director of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation.

A seasoned nonprofit leader and democracy advocate, she has made significant contributions to various fields including tech ethics, cannabis legalization, and public health policy. Dr. Allen also made history as the first Black woman ever to run for statewide office in Massachusetts during her gubernatorial campaign from 2020 to 2022. She continues to advocate for democracy reform through her organization, Partners In Democracy, and serves on multiple boards including the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education and the Democracy Fund.

2024 Honorees

The John G. Brooks Legal Services Award Recipient

Rosie’s Place

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Rosie’s place was founded in 1974 as the first women’s shelter in the United States. Today, it is a vibrant multi-service community center that offers emergency shelter, meals, legal assistance, wellness care, one-on-one support, housing and job search services, and community outreach.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Gene Dahmen, Verrill Dana

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Gene Dahmen graduated as one of just three women in her class at the University of Virginia Law School. Although she had, in her words, a very positive experience at UVA and continues to be deeply involved with the Law School, she also understood how it felt to be part of an underrepresented group. As a practicing attorney in the years prior to her election as the first woman President of the Boston Bar Association in 1987, she continued to see firsthand the harmful effects of treating women and minorities as “other.”

Thus, Dahmen made it her prime objective as BBA President to ensure that all Boston attorneys, regardless of race or gender, felt at home at the BBA.

Steering Committee


Committee Co-Chair
Yvonne Chan
Jones Day


Committee Co-Chair
Mandy Petrillo
Boston Red Sox


Deepika Bhayana
Dell EMC


Brandon Bigelow
Seyfarth


Caitlyn Campbell
McDermott Will & Emery


Alvin Carter
Brown Rudnick


Eben Colby
Skadden


Michael DiStefano
Todd & Weld


Angel Feng
Mintz


David Friedman
Rubin & Rudman


Peter Haley
Nelson Mullins


Jennifer Ioli Connolly
Sherin & Lodgen


Nicole Levesque
Ashcroft


Nina Pickering Cook
Anderson Kreiger


Maddy Rodriguez
Foley Hoag


Melanie Todmann
Mass General Brigham


David Tolley
Latham & Watkins


Sucharita Varanasi
MassMutual