Onchantho Am | Associate General Counsel | University of Central Florida - College of Medicine

Onchantho Am is an Associate General Counsel at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine on the Lake Nona Health Sciences Campus. Onchantho provides legal support in health care affiliations, transactions, joint ventures, and counsel for a diverse range of health care-related activities in education, research, and clinical services.  She also develops and reviews contracts for the College of Medicine, its clinical practice UCF Health, Student Health Services, and other health-related programs. Onchantho addresses health care regulatory, liability, HIPAA, and compliance issues, and assists with legal and university policy issues involving students, residents, faculty, and staff.  As part of the UCF Office of General Counsel, she provides legal representation and advice to the university and its trustees, officers, and employees.  She protects the university from adverse legal and financial consequences; advises on the decision-making process; and supports strategic initiatives of the College and University. Prior to joining the University in June of 2022, Onchantho served as an executive and chief legal officer for a local mental health substance misuse and child wellbeing nonprofit organization in Longwood, Florida. Onchantho received her Juris Doctorate from Stetson University College of Law and was awarded the Victor O. Wehle Award for outstanding work in Trial Advocacy and the Thomas E. Penick Jr. Award for Community Service.  She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of Florida.

She has been locally and nationally recognized by her peers for her integrity as a leader and professional. In 2020, Central Florida Association of Women Lawyers selected Onchantho as its Women of Distinction Trendsetter Award.  In 2021, Onchantho was honored as one of the Orlando Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Award Recipients, and in 2022 Onchantho was nationally recognized as the National Association of Asian American Professionals Inspire Awardee.

Aaron Bains | Partner | Aird & Berlis LLP

Aaron Bains is a Capital Markets lawyer with a wealth of expertise in the legal and business sectors. Since 2015, he has served at Aird & Berlis LLP, a prominent Canadian business law firm in the heart of Toronto’s financial district.

Specializing in corporate law – particularly in debt and equity financing and domestic and international M&A – Aaron works closely with prominent investors, often advising U.S. and Canadian banks or investment funds on their lending transactions in Canada. He also assists emerging companies with debt strategies for growth.

Beyond his legal practice, Aaron holds various community leadership roles, including serving as a board member and Chair of the Advancement Committee for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada, and as a regional advisor for the World Sikh Organization. Aaron is Board Member and Former President of the South Asian Bar Association of Toronto (SABA Toronto), the largest legal diversity organization in Canada with a membership of over 1,300 lawyers in the Toronto area. SABA Toronto is one of the South Asian Bar Association of North America’s (“SABA North America”) 29 chapters. In addition to his work with SABA Toronto, Aaron recently served as Secretary and Member of the Executive Committee for SABA North America. He is also presently the chair of the 2024 North America Conference, which is to be held in Toronto, Ontario. In addition, Aaron has contributed in leadership capacities to organizations such as the Breakfast of Champions Charity for SickKids Hospital, the St. George’s Society of Toronto, and the Canadian International Council.

Heaven Chee | Partner | León Cosgrove Jiménez, LLP

Heaven C. Chee is a Partner at the Houston, TX office of León Cosgrove Jiménez, LLP who focuses her practice on high-stakes commercial litigation and appeals, with particular emphasis representing clients in the technology, financial services, and healthcare industries.

Ms. Chee has tried cases in both state and federal court and has appeared in courts of appeal throughout Texas. She has handled every stage of disputes, from managing pre-suit investigations by state and federal agencies through the appeal’s final disposition upon the denial of certiorari by the United States Supreme Court. Her areas of practice include antitrust, securities, maritime, intellectual property, and whistleblower laws.

Ms. Chee is recognized in commercial litigation as “One to Watch” by Best Lawyers in America and as a “Texas Rising Star” by Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers. Prior to joining the firm, she practiced with Yetter Coleman LLP and Hogan Lovells US LLP in Houston and clerked for the Honorable Judge George C. Hanks, Jr. and the Honorable Judge Yvonne Y.  Ho, both of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

Nyssa is a technology and privacy attorney who advises global clients on privacy, security, free speech, digital safety, and human rights issues associated with electronic communications and activity.

She regularly represents online platforms, communications providers, and other technologies on issues related to data disclosure, data preservation, content moderation, and content removal. These matters range from domestic and cross-border government demands for communications data in criminal investigations to intergovernmental agencies investigating atrocity crimes in humanitarian crises. In the area of cross-border digital evidence, Nyssa advises clients on issues arising from the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act (CLOUD) Act, the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime (Budapest Convention), and other international and domestic mechanisms utilized by governments and litigants to obtain evidence from a platform in one country for use in another country. She also provides guidance on government search and seizure issues, and has worked with counsel in dozens of countries to help companies process non-U.S. requests for communications user data.

Prior to joining Perkins Coie, Nyssa was corporate counsel at Microsoft. She managed the global trademark portfolio for various business groups, counseled senior level business executives on business and legal risks related to trademarks, and conducted negotiations with third parties for use and acquisition of marks. She also served on the Pro Bono Steering Committee.

In addition, Nyssa maintains an active pro bono practice, with a focus on immigration and international human rights. In partnership with the Seattle Clemency Project and the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, she successfully helped a Cambodian refugee who was facing an imminent threat of deportation and helped to restore his lawful permanent resident status. Most recently, she helped Afghan refugees navigate the complexities of the humanitarian parole and asylum process.

Before beginning her legal career, Nyssa spent a few years on international human rights issues at the U.S. Department of State across Europe and Asia, was a Fulbright scholar in journalism in Germany, and co-founded a health and wellness company.

Minsuk Han | Partner | Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel & Frederick P.L.L.C.

Minsuk Han represents plaintiffs and defendants in trial and appellate courts and arbitration, as well as before federal agencies. He has particular experience with complex commercial disputes, securities investigations and litigation, antitrust and intellectual property law, and attorney malpractice matters.

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Han served as a law clerk to the Honorable Andrew J. Kleinfeld on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Mr. Han also practiced in Frankfurt, Germany, advising clients on U.S. law issues in equity and debt capital markets, private equity fund, and debt financing matters.

Mr. Han is a graduate of Seoul National University Business School (summa cum laude, 2010) and Cornell Law School (magna cum laude, 2014), and he is admitted to the bar in New York, 2015; District of Columbia, 2016; and California, 2017. He has previously served as President of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of the Greater Washington, D.C. Area (2023-2024) and on the Board of Directors of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association Educational Fund as President (2018-2019) and Vice President (2017-2018). Mr. Han currently serves on the Rules of Professional Conduct Review Committee of the District of Columbia Bar.

Mr. Han teaches commercial arbitration at the George Washington University Law School as professorial lecturer in law.

Winston Hsiao | Partner | Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Winston Hsiao’s practice focuses on complex civil litigation in state and federal courts. He represents clients in a wide range of suits, including securities and shareholder litigation, tax shelter and accounting malpractice, trade secret actions, contract disputes, unfair competition claims and fraud claims.

Mr. Hsiao also has represented clients in private arbitrations, internal investigations, criminal matters and appeals. His clients include U.S. and international companies in the financial services, tax consulting, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical insurance, energy, education, consumer products, logistics and food industries.

Mr. Hsiao was named one of the Los Angeles Business Journal’s Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Attorneys in 2023, recognized among the 500 Leading Litigators in America by Lawdragon and listed as one of Best Lawyers’ 2024 Ones To Watch in America. Additionally, he was recognized on Benchmark Litigation’s 2024 40 and Under list. He also was selected as a member of Law360’s Securities Editorial Board in 2024. Mr. Hsiao serves as the litigation hiring partner for the firm’s Los Angeles office, is a member of the LA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee and is chair of the office’s Asian and Pacific Islander Affinity Network.

Stephen Mar | Chief Legal & Administrative Officer | Odeko

Kelly Matayoshi | Partner | Farella Braun + Martel LLP

Kelly Matayoshi represents a broad range of local and international companies to thoughtfully handle their complex business and employment litigation needs.

In her business litigation practice, Kelly focuses on products liability, contract disputes, breach of fiduciary duty, and other business disputes. She has a deep understanding of the consumer products industry, having many clients in this space. Kelly is national coordinating counsel for a flexible gas tubing manufacturer, where she handles every aspect of litigation, beginning with the notice letter that originates the case, through fact-gathering, working with experts, discovery, motion practice, negotiation, and settlement or trial.

Kelly also has extensive employment experience, effectively representing employers in state and federal court as well as numerous agencies on a range of causes of action including wrongful termination and class action wage and hour disputes. She has counseled clients through countless single plaintiff lawsuits, and aggressively defends them while always seeking opportunities to resolve them to her client’s benefit. She has represented employers in the transportation and sales industries concerning issues arising under a variety of employment statutes and regulations such as exemptions, split shifts, meal and rest breaks, overtime, vacation, wage statements, deductions, and commissions.

She currently serves as the firm’s Hiring Partner.

Alexander Payne | Assistant Managing Partner | Minyard Morris

Born and raised as the only Chinese-American on the French Caribbean island of Saint Martin where his family still calls home, Alex had brief stints throughout the Caribbean and South America where he attended schools taught only in French, Spanish, and Papiamento. Alex eventually migrated to the United States and earned his undergraduate degree from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and his Juris Doctorate in Virginia from George Mason University School of Law, a Tier I law school, which he attended because of its focus on economics in law.

Following law school, Alex practiced criminal law in Virginia, which included criminal appellate matters. Alex ultimately moved back to California and spent five years practicing business litigation, primarily focusing on employment, construction defects, and contract litigation. Alex's diverse caseload ran the gamut from simple actions involving a single agreement or unrepresented opposing party to major actions involving publicly traded companies, international disputes from Mexico to China, and matters deemed "complex." Alex litigated these actions in federal and state courts, before judges, administrators, and commissioners, and through alternative dispute resolution services.

Alex transitioned from general civil litigation to focus exclusively on family law at Minyard Morris to assist real people get through one of the most trying times of their lives - divorce. Alex has excelled in family law.

Alex graduated from the National Family Law Trial Institute in Houston, Texas. "The National Family Law Trial Institute is the preeminent litigation skills course dedicated exclusively to family law." Alex went to successive 3-day programs focusing on business valuation and cross examination.

Alex is an assistant managing partner of Minyard Morris and limits his practice to family law matters in Orange County. Alex is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML). The "American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) is the leader in Family Law continuing education, publications, networking and training." "Fellows of the Academy have set the standard for the matrimonial bar. They have helped improve the quality of family law practice throughout the country for attorneys and litigants alike." In Orange County, there are approximately 17 AAML Fellows and four are partners at Minyard Morris. Mark E. Minyard, Michael A. Morris, Lonnie K. Seide, and Alexander C. Payne.

Alex is an active member of the local community. Alex is on the Board of Directors for the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA). Alex is a Director for the Public Law Center (PLC), which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing free legal services to low-income residents and other nonprofits in Orange County. Alex serves on leadership for the Orange County Asian American Bar Association (OCAABA) and as President for the Orange County Korea American Bar Foundation (OCKABA Foundation), which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit promoting and advancing charitable activities relating to the law for the benefit of all communities, particularly the Korean-American community in Orange County.

Raymond R. Rollan | Assistant General Counsel | Office of General Counsel at State Bar of California 

A career public servant, Raymond (Ray) is passionate about promoting civility in the legal profession, coalition building, and mentorship. He currently serves as an Assistant General Counsel with the Office of General Counsel at the State Bar of California, where he provides general legal advice to various departments and defends the State Bar in state and federal matters. He previously served as a lead Deputy City Attorney with the Trial Team of the San Francisco City Attorney's Office, where he worked for nearly five-and-a-half years. Prior to that, Ray served as a Deputy City Attorney with the Hayward City Attorney's Office, as an associate at Haapala, Thompson, and Abern LLP, and as a law clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.  

Ray is Past President of the Filipino Bar Association of Northern California (FBANC) and served as the first LGBTQ+ President in the organization's 44-year history. During his tenure on the FBANC Board, Ray worked with the BALIF Foundation Board to establish the BALIF/FBANC Pamilya (Family) Scholarship, the first of its kind scholarship in the country awarded to a Filipinx and LGBTQ+ law student. In 2020, he founded the Komunidad Conference, the only conference in the country catered to the specific needs and issues faced by Filipino/a/x law students.  

Ray is completing his sixth and final term as Co-Chair of the LGBTQ+ Network of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA). He is a board member of the Northern District of California Historical Society (NDHS) and a member of the Judiciary Committee of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area (AABA). Ray also serves as Co-Chair of the Government and Public Sector Network of the National Filipino American Lawyers Association (NFALA) and as a board member of the Foundation of the Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom (BALIF). In January 2024, Ray was appointed to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Civil Local Rules Attorney Advisory Committee.  

In 2022, the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association recognized Ray as one of the country’s Best 40 Lawyers Under 40. He was also a featured leader in the LGBTQ+ section of the historic "California Is In The Heart" exhibit at the California Museum in Sacramento, California. In 2023, Ray received a Minority Bar Coalition Unity Award. In 2024, in recognition of his service to the legal profession, the American Bar Association selected Ray as a recipient of the On The Rise - Top 40 Young Lawyers Award. 

Raymond Tran | Senior Counsel | Southern Company - Georgia Power 

Raymond is a problem solver who relies on his attention to practical detail and ability to cut through the clutter to produce the most direct solution and “make things happen”. As Senior Counsel for Georgia Power Company, Raymond counsels and manages risks for the largest subsidiary of one of the nation’s largest generators of electricity in all of its real estate transactions and large-scale projects involving its energy, renewable energy, real estate, and infrastructure portfolios.

Prior to going in-house, Raymond was an associate in the Atlanta office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, where he represented his clients to scale their real estate footprint and strategically secure commercial real estate assets. Before practicing law, Raymond spent nearly 5 years as a consultant, choreographer, and production manager across 4 continents and 12 countries, and draws from his “life before lawyering” to think outside the box. Raymond is one of ten recently inducted members of the 2024 class of “Outstanding Atlanta” for his leadership in the Atlanta community and is also a current a member of the 2024 NAPABA Leadership Advancement Program cohort.  He is a veteran officer and board member of the Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association (GAPABA) and GAPABA Law Foundation, recipient of the 2023 of the GAPABA Han C Choi Mentor Award, and was named the “One to Watch” in 2023 by the State Bar of Georgia and “On the Rise” in 2022 by the Georgia Legal Awards.