The Boston Bar Association is excited to announce the launch of the Active Duty Military & Veterans Forum, which will enable volunteers to continue the BBA’s longstanding tradition of providing resources and opportunities for servicemembers and veterans in our community.
This forum will spotlight the needs of active duty military personnel, reservists, and veterans within and outside of the legal profession. The forum’s volunteer members will facilitate connections between those facing legal issues and legal services providers. The forum will also serve as a network for servicemembers and veterans who are attorneys themselves and care deeply about expanding access to justice for this vulnerable population.
Like the BBA Active Duty Military & Veterans Committee which preceded it, the forum will continue to advise the BBA Lawyer Referral Service on the its Military & Veterans Legal Help Line. The forum will also provide resources to law students and young lawyers who are veterans, exploring opportunities to connect them more senior members of the bar to ease the transition from the military to the legal profession.
The BBA’s forums serve attorneys with common interests related to the legal community beyond their practice areas, and with the launch of the Active Duty Military & Veterans Forum, we hope to further integrate veterans into the BBA’s vibrant and diverse community of lawyers.
“I have found the opportunity to network with other veterans on a similar professional path to mine invaluable, and I am glad to be able to share that opportunity with others,” Forum co-chair Jonathan Hayden, a U.S. Army JAG Corps veteran, said. “We share a desire to better the lives of all veterans, and the Active Duty Military & Veterans Forum allows us to do that work together.”
“Having endured numerous hardships in service, many veterans continue to face additional hardships stemming from legal issues, long after their service has ended,” Forum Co-chair Jessica Youngberg, a staff attorney and former Skadden Fellow at Veterans Legal Services, said. “With legal services in limited supply, veterans—especially those with low incomes—often have unmet legal needs related to benefits, consumer debt, housing, and family, among others. Lawyers who are involved with the Forum are well-positioned to learn about and to help in this critical area of need.”
To celebrate the launch of the forum, you’re invited to join us on Wednesday, January 24th from 12:00 – 1:30 PM at the BBA for a Meet & Greet Luncheon. All attorneys, law students, and your friends in the legal community are invited to attend. This is an opportunity to meet your fellow attorneys who served in the military and attorneys currently working and volunteering for veterans legal services organizations. This luncheon will also feature guest speaker Andy McCarty, Director of the Center for the Advancement of Veterans and Servicemembers (CAVS) at Northeastern University, who will discuss how CAVS serves student veterans at the university. To sign-up for this event, please click here .
If you are interested in getting involved with the BBA Active Duty Military & Veterans Forum, please contact Cassandra Shavney at cshavney@bostonbar.org
