SAN FRANCISCO, CA - October 23, 2025 - The Queen’s Bench Bar Association hosted its inaugural annual Gala on October 8, 2025 at the picturesque Palace Hotel in San Francisco, California, celebrating both local judges and Queen’s Bench leadership in one memorable night.
Titled A Celebration of Leadership and Legacy, the Gala combined the Past Presidents’ and Judges’ Dinners into one elegant event celebrating and honoring the legacy passed down by the bar association's prior leaders and the inspiration drawn from the judges who serve our community. The evening also highlighted several Queen's Bench programs, including scholarship recipients, annual Merit Award honorees, and both a live and silent auction benefiting the Queen's Bench Foundation.
Attendees included neutrals and staff from our Premier Underwriter, Signature Resolution, as well as from our Supporting Underwriters: ADR Services, Inc., Feller Law Group, and Stross Wess Cutcher & Levin LLP. Our Gala sponsors also helped make the evening possible: Counsel Table Sponsor Trucker Huss; Sidebar Sponsors Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, Horvitz & Levy, and Peiffer Wolf Carr Kane Conway & Wise; and Clerkship Sponsors the Law Offices of Lisa A. Villasenor, 2024 President Kara Wild, and the San Mateo County Bar Association Women Lawyers’ Section. We also extend our appreciation to our Past Presidents Circle contributors: Hon. Ina Levin Gyemant (Ret.), 1979 President; Hon. Adrienne Jacobs Miller (Ret.), 1987 President; Eliza Rodrigues, 2003 President; Kelly Robbins, 2008 President; and Kimiko Akiya, 2023 President.
After a cocktail reception, Queen’s Bench First Vice President and Gala Committee Vice-Chair Sara Craig opened the Gala dinner with welcome remarks, recognizing our sponsors as well as the judges, past presidents, and neutrals in attendance. In recognizing the work of Queen’s Bench past leadership, Sara emphasized “what connects us all: a shared belief in justice, equality, and the power of community.”
This year’s Keynote Speaker was Hon. Victoria Kolakowski, Judge of the Superior Court of Alameda County, who became the first openly transgender trial court judge when she was elected in 2010. Judge Kolakowski gave inspiring, and at times sobering, remarks about her experiences in the legal profession and the importance of protecting people of all gender identities.
Following the keynote, Sara presented the 2025 Queen’s Bench Merit Awards. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Hon. Charlene Padovani Kiesselbach (Ret.), 1986 President; the Service Award to Hon. Dorothy Chou Proudfoot of the San Francisco Rent Board; and the Rookie Award to Veena Bansal.
After the Merit Award recipients were recognized, Queen’s Bench President Elisha Jussen-Cooke presented the Past President’s Hat to 2024 Past President Kara Wild.
Kara then introduced the Scholarships Committee members in attendance, Hon. Adrienne Jacobs Miller (Ret.), 1987 President and Hon. Ina Levin Gyemant (Ret.). Judge Miller presented the 2025 Agnes O’Brien Scholarship Recipients, Kasen Evans and Esbeidy Gutierrez, both members of the University of San Francisco School of Law Class of 2027. Judge Gyemant presented the 2025 Mildred W. Levin Scholarship Recipient, Jaqueline Mejía-Cuéllar, a 2025 graduate of UC Law San Francisco.
The night concluded with an animated live auction supporting the Queen’s Bench Foundation, conducted by Queen’s Bench Secretary and Gala Committee Co-Chair Juliane Smith. Live auction items included a night at the SF Symphony with Judge Gyemant; a tour and private tasting for four at Raymond Vineyards in Napa, with a magnum bottle of 2004 Raymond St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon; and two tickets to a San Francisco Ballet 2026 Repertory Season performance. The Gala also featured a silent auction with a variety of items, from wine tastings to garden memberships, generously bid on by attendees.
