Akerman is proud to sponsor the LGBT Bar Association of Los Angeles 2019 Gala, which will honor the LGBT Center with the Community Service Award for championing more LGBT people than any other organization in the world, offering programs, services, and global advocacy. The LGBT Center is an unstoppable force in the fight against bigotry and the struggle to build a better world, a world in which LGBT people can be healthy, equal, and complete members of society. The LGBT Bar Association of Los Angeles is recognizing R. Bradley (Brad) Sears, the Associate Dean for Public Interest Programs and the David Sanders Distinguished Scholar of Law and Policy at UCLA School of Law with this year’s Co-Presidents Award for his outstanding record of leadership and innovation as the founding director of the Williams Institute.

Akerman has been selected as the recipient of the 2019 Community Partner of the Year, which recognizes a community partner that exemplifies, supports, and advances the values and goals of the LGBT Bar Association, including advocating for equal rights for LGBT lawyers, supporting the LGBT community, and advancing LGBT law students and lawyers in the profession. Akerman will be honored for its LGBT-friendly policies, benefits, active employee networks, recruiting efforts, and culture, as well its pro bono efforts on behalf of LGBT causes.

This year's theme is "40 Years of Claiming Space," which honors those who came together 40 years ago to ensure a place for LGBT attorneys and legal professionals to participate in the Los Angeles community. The range of honorees at the event will celebrate where the LGBT Bar Association of Los Angeles has been as an organization and the LGBT community, and also where we are going together.