By Nelson A. King
Caribbean American Justice
Sylvia O. Hinds-Radix has been
elected president of the newlyformed,
Brooklyn-based Caribbean
American Lawyers Association
(CALA).
Barbadian-born Justice
Hinds-Radix, who serves as an
Associate Justice of the New
York State Appellate Division,
Second Department, told Caribbean
Life over the weekend that
CALA was formed after she was
contacted by a few Caribbean
attorneys who wanted to see a
bar association that reflected
the Caribbean Diaspora.
Justice Hinds-Radix, a
former administrative judge
for Civil Matters in the Second
Judicial District, said CALA’s
vice president, Yvette Hinds-
Wills, specifically reached out
to her, “because she had this
burning desire to form such a
bar association.
“Collectively, they believed it
was timely and necessary, both
in the legal profession and in
the community as a whole,”
Justice Hinds-Radix said.
Similar to other bar associations,
Caribbean Life, J 8 uly 31-August 6, 2020
she said CALA intends
to serve the community by
providing legal information;
mentorship of young attorneys
and those who want to become
attorneys; conducting courses
informing people of their individual
rights.
“The association intends to
continue the growth and promotion
of the law, within the
Caribbean community, to get
young people the necessary
exposure early on to understand
how they can become
lawyers, judges and community
leaders,” Justice Hinds-Radix
said.
She said this can be accomplished
by “going into schools
on career days, working with
churches and other community
organizations to provide
information on the issues that
impact our community the
most, such as immigration,
housing, elder abuse, etc.”
Justice Hinds-Radix said
CALA’s long-term goals include
having “seasoned mentors
who can guide young attorneys
to ensure that they are
fully familiar with their ethical
responsibilities.
“This is extremely important
during these times,” she
said. “Young attorneys need to
understand that they are held
to a higher standard ethically;
and, if they go afoul, they
must have the resources and
the knowledge necessary, so
they do not lose their licenses
to practice law.”
In addition, Justice Hinds-
Radix said the formation of
CALA is “a great opportunity
to make the legal community
familiar with the lawyers and
judges, of Caribbean descent,
who live, work and practice in
the community.”
She said CALA’s officers,
board of directors and members
hail from various islands
within the Diaspora, including
Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago,
Jamaica, Haiti, Guyana, Dominica
and Puerto Rico, among
others.
Besides Justice Hinds-Radix
and Hinds-Wills, Esq., other
elected officials are: Michelle
DeSouza-Forte, Esq. (2nd vice
president); Carmelle Robillard,
Esq. (treasurer); and Valerie I.
Barbadian-born Justice Sylvia O. Hinds-Radix. Justice Sylvia O.
Hinds-Radix
Howell, Esq. (corresponding
secretary).
The board of directors comprise:
Natoya McGhie, Esq.,
president of the Brooklyn
Women’s Bar Association; Rudyard
Whyte, Esq.; Sonia Blake,
Esq.; Jade Edwards, Esq.; Dale
Fong-Frederick, Esq.; and Justice
Hinds-Radix’s daughter,
Jovia Radix, Esq.
Other Board of Directors
are: Judges Wavny Toussaint,
Ruth Shillingford, Alvin Yearwood,
Machelle Sweeting and
Michele Rodney.
Justice Hinds-Radix said
interacting with children and
young adults is a great passion,
which she incorporates with
her love of the law by being a
mentor and advisor to those
who seek a career in the legal
profession.
Justice Sylvia Hinds-Radix heads
Caribbean American Lawyers Association
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