Arizona Jewish Lawyers Association
In November 2010, a few friends got together for lunch and discussed a common desire to form a group to foster connections with other Jewish lawyers and law students in Arizona. These friends would become the founding members of the Arizona Jewish Lawyers Association (AJLA). When Elise Herman, Ben Himmelstein, Jason Keer, Adam Polson, and Samuel Saks realized that there was no organization for Jewish attorneys in Arizona they took action and started connecting Jewish legal community members through social events. And with these friends serving as the first Board Members, so it began… AJLA became a reality when it hosted its first event, a happy hour at Half Moon Sports Bar and Grill on January 20, 2011. That first event was a resounding success and evidenced a desire in the legal community to create a space for Jewish members to meet, build relationships, and support each other. Several of these original Board members continue to serve on the AJLA Board.
The founding board members started AJLA not only to bring together Jewish attorneys but with a principal goal of giving back to their community. AJLA’s mission statement is that “AJLA brings together attorneys, judges, and law students to build and develop community through educational, social, philanthropic and networking activities.” These 4 pillars: education, philanthropy, networking, and social connection are at the core of each program put on by AJLA with the goal of building and strengthening the ties between Jewish lawyers, judges, legal professionals, and law students in the Arizona legal community and serving as a resource for the Arizona Jewish community at large.
From social mixers to CLEs, AJLA has strengthened ties within not only the legal community but the Jewish community as a whole. The programming AJLA focuses on is inclusive of all legal professionals and law students as well as non-lawyers. The AJLA proudly organizes multiple continuing legal educational programs in addition to social networking, community services, and meet the bench events throughout the year. For example, its signature annual Holocaust Remembrance CLE features both a legal speaker and a Holocaust survivor and has historically been very well attended.
Since the beginning, AJLA has emphasized inclusion. The founding members decided not to charge membership dues, and rather operate on generous sponsorships in an effort to keep their events as accessible to as many as possible by eliminating any potential cost barrier to entry. AJLA strives to host an event every month, and in addition to these events AJLA promotes community service by devoting time to helping those in need. AJLA regularly hosts community service events. Past events have included water bottle drives to collect and donate water bottles to the homeless in Arizona, providing catered lunches to first responders and essential workers during the pandemic, collecting school supplies for Title 1 schools, and packaging kosher-meals for community members at a local food pantry.
AJLA also is a proud member of the Collaborative Bar and regularly partners with sister bar organizations to create meaningful relationships with their memberships. Looking toward the future the AJLA hopes to continue the important programming surrounding Holocaust Remembrance, fostering connections with other bar organizations, and expanding their membership with newer lawyers and board members.
Notably, the AJLA membership includes influential attorneys and judges including, 9th circuit Judge Andrew D. Hurwitz, ret. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Bruce Cohen, and one of AJLA’s very own founding members, Samuel Saks, is the incoming President of the State Bar of Arizona, Board of Governors.
For more information, please visit their website at https://www.jewishphoenix.com/organization/az-jewish-lawyers-association/.
Interview Clips
Sam Saks and Elise Herman, both founding members, recall efforts to create the Arizona Jewish Lawyers Association (“AJLA”) here:
Elise Herman discusses the first program put on by the Arizona Jewish Lawyers Association here:
Elise Herman, Nina Targovnik, Erica Erman, and Ben Himmelstein highlight the mission statement of AJLA, the motivation behind forming AJLA, and the purpose AJLA serves in the community:
Sam Saks and Erica Erman talk about the membership structure of AJLA here:
Nina Targovnik, Erica Erman, and Ben Himmelstein discuss community legal education and other programming efforts here:
Clip 1
Clip 2
Clip 3
Clip 4
Clip 5
Clip 6
Erica Erman highlights community service efforts here:
Erica Erman, Nina Targovnik, and Elise Herman discuss how they became involved with AJLA here:
Sam Saks talks about AJLA’s involvement with the collaborative bar here:
