Bankers and lawyers have two of the poorest reputations of any professional groups, but on September 23 representatives of these occupations showed their potential for doing good: they teamed up to present the first in a series of free seminars for small-business owners in Chinatown.
The event was the combined brainchild of the Economic Justice Project (part of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights), Cathay Bank, and Boston-based firm Ropes & Gray. The EJP has worked in low-income areas like Brockton and Mattapan and had long been hoping to expand into Chinatown when Cathay Regional Senior Vice President Johnny Ip called them early this year.
“We always want to give back to the community,” Ip explained. “Our roots are in Asia, and we want to help Asians and Asian Americans. I had been seeing flyers around for other free LCCR seminars, so I decided to talk to them about developing our own series.”
As planning began, the biggest concern was developing a program tailored to local needs. “We asked ourselves, ‘What would be appropriate content for Chinatown? Should we start from the beginning or do something sophisticated? Should it be industry focused?’” EJP fellow Nathaniel Kurtis said. “Luckily, Cathay has always been a strong partner in the community here, and they helped us reach out to people. They brought in our cosponsors [BCNC, ACDC, Chinatown Main St, and AACA], as well.”
Ropes & Gray proved to be an enthusiastic partner. According to Darren Braham, one of the attorney volunteers, the firm has a “really responsive pro bono department,” that had no trouble recruiting presenters.
With speakers and sponsors secured, Ip offered Cathay’s location on Washington Street as the seminar space and began a publicity blitz, including a press release, a booth at the August moon festival, and letters to all of the branch’s customers. It worked: on September 23, over 60 people filled the bank’s lobby, drinking coffee from paper cups and chatting in a swirl of Mandarin, Cantonese, and English.
Braham and his colleagues started the workshop with a brief introduction, then segued into a discussion of company types and their corresponding tax and debt consequences, anti-discrimination policies, employee termination standards, zoning, and more. In between topics the five attorneys took questions from the audience. Cantonese and Mandarin translators were on hand to help with questions, clarify answers, and summarize important parts of the presentation.
Although they touched on many topics, the attorneys made a special effort to highlight what they called the “take-home message of the evening”: the importance of putting every business agreement in writing. “The time when you need a contract is when it goes wrong. Even when it’s with a family member, you want it in writing,” attorney Jonathan Lackow stressed.
The workshop ended with an invitation to a follow-up clinic at the bank on October 21 from 6-8 PM, where attendees will be able to talk to a Ropes & Gray attorney for 20-30 minutes about individual questions and problems. That clinic will be followed in several months by another workshop devoted to more advanced business issues.
Ip looks forward to these and more events as a way for Cathay Bank to continue to connect with and give back to Chinatown. “I think this was a real success,” he said. “Already people are asking me to make sure to tell them when the next one is held.”
Alissa Greenberg is a Sampan correspondent.
