Keker & Van Nest Partner Laurie Mims serves on the planning committee which is organizing the 11th Annual Northern California Judicial Reception. At the event, the Honorable Isabella Horton Grant (Ret.) will receive the 2011 Rose Bird Memorial Award.
Judge Grant, formerly of the San Francisco Superior Court Probate Department, was appointed to the Municipal Court in 1979 and elevated to the Superior Court in 1982. She practiced law for more than 35 years before taking the bench. She is also a former adjunct professor of law at Hastings College of Law and received her juris doctor from Columbia University Law School.
The Rose Bird Memorial Award was established in 2000 in honor of the first woman to serve as Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court, Rose Bird. Chief Justice Bird was one of the pioneers who founded California Women Lawyers in 1974. Justice Bird stood strong for her convictions and continued to champion the underdog. After leaving her position as Chief Justice, she volunteered for the East Palo Alto Community Law Project. She died on December 4, 1999 after a long battle with breast cancer.
Please visit the California Women Lawyers website for event registration information.
In addition to her extensive experience litigating complex civil and white collar criminal matters, Ms. Mims is an active member of many professional organizations including the California Women Lawyers, the American Bar Association Young Lawyers’ Division, and the Association of Business Trial Lawyers.