Dominican Bar Association swears in Queens-based president

Queens Village resident and attorney Jamell Isidor was sworn in as president of the Dominican Bar Association last week. Photo courtesy of DBA

By Rachel Vick

The Dominican Bar Association swore in its 2022 officers during a ceremony officiated by Supreme Court Justice Bianka Perez Thursday, including a Queens resident as its president.

Queens Village resident Jamell Isidor, a first generation lawyer who immigrated to New York City from the Dominican Republic with her mother when she was a child, officially began her tenure as president last week.

“I feel lucky and honored to become part of our organization's history while forging a path in our future,” Isidor told the Eagle. “I have deep gratitude for everyone who has supported me to reach this point in my legal career and a great sense of responsibility to push the DBA community upward. “

“This year we will be focusing on providing even more value for our members,” she added. “We will foster closer relationships with community organizations and affinity groups. We will continue to raise funds to offer law student scholarships.”

She also committed to expanding on last year’s efforts to create partnerships with universities in the Dominican Republic, a practice they hope will help them develop strong relationships with foreign attorneys and judges in order to support foreign attorneys who want to get licensed in the US.

The Latino community in the United States makes up 25 percent of the U.S. population and only 5 percent of its attorneys, and the number drops significantly among law firm partners and senior positions in government, according to Isidor.

“We still have a lot of work to do and I am inspired by our board and past presidents and officers,” she said. “They worked hard to grow us to this point, and we will continue to build and grow.”

“I look forward to collaborating with other bar associations and community groups to work toward the crucial mission of supporting people of color in their advancement in the legal profession, whether you are here in the U.S., the Dominican Republic, or any other country,” Isidor added. “Reach out to us. We are here and we want to help in any way we can.”

Isidor’s Queens ties run deep — she attended P.S. 19 in Corona and George Ryan J.H.S. 216 before attending CUNY School of Law. She currently serves as deputy director of the Administrative Enforcement Unit of the New York City Department of Buildings.

Also installed were First President-elect Jeffrey Saavedra, associate at Dechert LLP; Second President-elect Rosemarin Belliard, associate at Gibney, Anthony & Flaherty, LLP; Vice President Dorian Rojas, attorney for Safe Horizon, Immigration Law Project; Treasurer Keila S. Espinosa, attorney from The Legal Aid Society ; Recording Secretary Andrea Rodriguez, vice president and associate counsel at Build America Mutual Assurance Company; and

Corresponding Secretary Atenedoro Gonzalez, general counsel and policy director for Councilmember Oswald Feliz.

The 2022 directors are Alexis Colón, managing partner at Colón and Partners; Darlyn Ramos, in-house counsel for BNP Paribas; Sharly Larios, director of Business and Legal Affairs for Sony Music, and Daniel Irizarry, agency attorney for NYC Commission on Human Rights.