LOS ANGELES, Calif., December 5, 2016. On Saturday, December 3, 2016, Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, Inc. (“BWL”) held a loving Memorial Tribute service to honor the legacy and leadership of BWL Co-Founder Justice Vaino Hassan Spencer, who passed away on October 25, 2016, at the age of 96.

Justice Spencer was a legal giant. She was the first African American woman judge in California when she was appointed to the Los Angeles Municipal Court in 1961, and only the third Black woman judge in the nation. In 1976, she was elevated to the Los Angeles Superior Court and, in 1980, to the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District. Justice Spencer served on the Court of Appeal for over 26 years, where she served as the Presiding Justice of Division One until her retirement in 2007. Serving on the bench for 46 years, Justice Spencer is one of the longest serving judicial officers in California.

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