Armenian Bar honors 3 LA judges for service, leadership

LOS FELIZ -- Three Los Angeles County Superior Court judges reflected on heritage, mentorship and public trust Thursday as the Armenian Bar Association honored them at its annual Judges' Night and Awards Dinner.

Judges Armenui Ami Ashvanian and Michael Amerian and Presiding Judge Sergio C. Tapia received awards before members of the bench and legal community gathered at The Grand Venue in Los Feliz.

Ashvanian, who was born in Soviet Armenia, traced her commitment to public service to her childhood, when she witnessed Cold War tensions and families struggling to put food on the table.

"You do it out of the goodness of your heart, to give back to society in a way that money cannot," Ashvanian said. "You give that simple humanity, and in many instances, that's all that's needed."

Ashvanian's connection to the Armenian Bar dates back more than 30 years, when she was a paralegal attending law school. She later became a prosecutor, taught law and worked with the U.S. State Department on overseas criminal justice training before Gov. Jerry Brown appointed her to the bench.

She credited the organization with allowing her to combine her legal career with service to the Armenian community through mentoring and educational programs.

"This award isn't just for me," Ashvanian said. "It represents our collective commitment to the Armenian Bar Association's mission."

Amerian's remarks centered on his late father, Justice Richard Amerian.

Judge Huey P. Cotton, who introduced Amerian, praised his commitment to civility, mentorship and the rule of law and recalled his work monitoring elections in Armenia in 2012.

Amerian told the audience that his connection to his father remains tangible every time he takes the bench.

"I've never actually gotten my own robe yet because I still wear my dad's every day," he said.

His father swore him into the bar and died about a year and a half later. Amerian said swearing in new attorneys is now among his favorite responsibilities because it reconnects him with that experience.

Before administering the oath, he asks new lawyers to look around the courtroom at the family and friends who helped them reach that moment.

"That moment is as much for those people as it is for the admittee," Amerian said.

Tapia, the evening's final honoree, used his remarks to focus less on his tenure as presiding judge than on the Armenian Bar's role in strengthening the judiciary.

Incoming Presiding Judge Ricardo R. Ocampo credited Tapia with securing funding for court infrastructure and interpreters, modernizing operations and expanding the court's presence in communities throughout Los Angeles County.

Tapia traced the Armenian Bar's mission beyond its 1989 founding to the Armenian genocide and generations of Armenians committed to preserving memory and historical truth.

"When people who have lived through a century of denial choose, generation after generation, to enter a profession built on evidence, testimony and the rule of law, that is not incidental," Tapia said. "It is an act of faith."

He credited the organization with mentoring law students, supporting young attorneys and increasing Armenian American representation on the bench.

"The association's work is not aspirational," Tapia said. "It is producing results, one appointment, one election, one meeting at a time."

Tapia broadened his remarks to affinity bar associations representing historically underrepresented communities, saying they have an important role in strengthening confidence in the courts.

"Trust in the judiciary is not a birthright. No robe or gavel confers it," he said. "Trust in the judiciary is earned, case by case, decision by decision."

He urged the organization to continue mentoring future lawyers and supporting greater representation in the judiciary.

"Memory, truth and the patient pursuit of justice are not separate causes," Tapia said. "They are the same cause, and we are in this fight together."