Kay Kyungsun Yu

Kay Kyungsun Yu is a seasoned and esteemed attorney and litigator with a law practice spanning 25 years. She has served as a partner at small and large firms, and has flourished as a leader and practitioner in both the private and public sectors. Kay is currently a member of Ahmad Zaffarese LLC, a certified Minority Business Enterprise, and leads the firm’s Labor & Employment and Litigation groups.

In 2008, Philadelphia Mayor Nutter appointed Kay to the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, and shortly thereafter, elevated her to Chairperson of the Commission. During her five years leading and serving on the Commission, Kay took on the task of addressing rampant intergroup conflict, which manifested amidst the tragic acts of violence that took place in South Philadelphia High School in 2009. Kay deftly facilitated a series of public hearings and investigations, which culminated in a comprehensive report which the Commission presented to Philadelphia School District to help resolve, track, and prevent intergroup conflict. Under Kay’s leadership, the Commission also spearheaded a landmark legislative effort to overhaul the Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance. The new Fair Practices Ordinance went into effect in 2011, providing victims an opportunity to easily pursue remedies for unlawful discrimination.

Kay’s remarkable dedication as an attorney extends well beyond her impressive legal practice. As a past-President, a 12-year board member of APABA-PA, and a Regional Governor Alternate for the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, Kay is an established leader in the APA legal community in Pennsylvania and nationally. She currently also serves as a Commissioner on the Governor’s Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs. During her presidency of APABA-PA, Kay led a campaign that tripled membership. Under her leadership, we experienced a revival in relevance and engagement within the local Philadelphia legal and Asian Pacific American communities, updated our organization’s infrastructure, and launched a new website. Notably, under her guidance, our organization was renamed from the Asian American Bar Association of the Delaware Valley to APABA-PA to reflect our organization’s expanded state-wide footprint.

As a recent recognition of Kay’s achievements, on April 17, 2018, the Philadelphia Bar Association honored her with the Justice Sonia Sotomayor Diversity Award.