2024-2025 Spotlights

FBA Maryland Chapter Continues to Celebrate National Veterans and Military Families Month by Recognizing Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown

Headshot photo of Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown

Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown is a distinguished leader whose career is marked by a profound commitment to public service, shaped significantly by his military background. As a veteran and legal advocate, he brings a unique perspective to his role, blending his experiences in the armed forces with a steadfast dedication to justice for all Marylanders.

Before becoming the first African American to hold the position of Attorney General in Maryland, Anthony Brown began his career in the United States Army. He graduated first in his U.S. Army flight school class at Fort Rucker in Alabama. Anthony Brown then went on to serve in active duty as a helicopter pilot with the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division in Europe.

Upon returning from active duty, Anthony Brown enrolled in Harvard Law School. After graduating from law school, he continued his career in military service as a legal advocate. Anthony Brown transferred from the Army's Aviation Branch to the Judge Advocate General's Corps to serve as a Judge Advocate General (JAG) in the Army Reserve. Anthony Brown clerked for Chief Judge Eugene Sullivan of the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces for two years. Then, while remaining active in the Army Reserve, he entered private practice before beginning his journey as a public servant in the Maryland legislature.

In 2004, while serving his second term in the House of Delegates, Anthony Brown deployed to Iraq on a 10-month tour with the 353rd Civil Affairs Command to render humanitarian relief to a war-torn country. In recognition of his distinguished service as a part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Anthony Brown earned a Bronze Star – the fourth-highest combat award of the U.S. Armed Forces – a Meritorious Service Medal, an Army Commendation Medal, and an Iraq Campaign Medal. In 2014, Anthony Brown retired from the Army at the rank of Colonel after 30 years of commissioned service.

His experiences in the military not only shaped his leadership skills but instilled a strong sense of duty and unwavering commitment to serve the public. As Attorney General, Anthony Brown has made advocating for veterans and active-duty service members a priority. Recognizing the unique challenges they face, he has launched initiatives focused on veterans’ mental health, housing, and access to legal resources. In addition to his advocacy for veterans, Anthony Brown has been a powerful voice for social justice across Maryland. He has tackled issues including racial and gender equity, consumer rights, environmental protection, gun safety, and mass incarceration.

Leading with integrity and compassion, Anthony Brown remains a steadfast champion for justice in Maryland, embodying the values of service, honor, and equity.


In Celebration of Veterans Day and Military Families Month, the FBA Maryland Chapter Recognizes and Spotlights United States District Judge Richard D. Bennett

Judge Bennett served over 20 years in the U.S. Army Reserve and Maryland National Guard and is a Major in the Retired Reserve. He received the Maryland Commendation Medal for Outstanding Service, the Maryland Distinguished Service Cross for Service Beyond the Call of Duty and the Meritorious Service Medal.

Judge Bennett's journey to the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps began when he graduated from college in the midst of the Vietnam War with the plan to join the Marine Corp Judge Advocate Division after conclusion of law school.  However, there was a cancellation of all graduate school deferments.  As a result, he served in the enlisted ranks of the Army Reserve while attending law school. 

After attending law school, Judge Bennett became an Assistant U.S. Attorney.  His case load as an Assistant U.S. Attorney required him to handle matters for military installations which ultimately prompted his return to military service.  Upon completion of coursework at the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's School in Charlottesville, Virginia, Judge Bennett became a JAG officer in the Maryland National Guard.

Judge Bennett served over 14 years as the Deputy Staff Judge Advocate of the Maryland National Guard.  In that capacity, he was involved in the mobilization and deployment of Maryland National Guard Units for Operation Desert Storm during the Persian Gulf War in late 1990 and early 1991. The mobilization and deployment proved to be his most memorable military experience.  Judge Bennett recalled that farmers on the Eastern Shore of Maryland mobilized at a transportation company in Salisbury.  Doctors and nurses at major Baltimore hospitals returned to duty at a combat support hospital in Baltimore.  Additionally, Maryland State Troopers quickly arrived at a military police company headquartered in Towson to prepare for deployment to operate a prisoner of war facility in Kuwait.  Reflecting on this time of his career, Judge Bennett recounted that not once did he ever see these valiant citizen-soldiers ever complain or cite personal circumstances which made it inconvenient for them to return to military duty.  Judge Bennett was awaiting his own deployment when the war came to a quick conclusion. 

Judge Bennett believes that the courage and dedication of his fellow service members and their families inspired him and that his legal training enabled him to essentially become the family lawyer for many of them.  Providing legal counsel for the preparation of 700 wills and powers of attorney for these men and women gave Judge Bennett a keen perspective of the sacrifice and impact of military service on many Maryland families. 

In Judge Bennett's view "it was an absolute privilege to serve with these men and women" and it reinforced his dedication to a life of service including his time on the bench.  Judge Bennett believes that the rich experiences he amassed serving in the military are at the core of his foundation -- not only strengthening him as a lawyer, but making him a more capable judge.


FBA Maryland Chapter Continues to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month Spotlighting Claudia R. Cubas, Assistant Chief Immigration Judge for the Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review

Claudia R. Cubas was appointed an Assistant Chief Immigration Judge (ACIJ), within the Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), in March 2024. Prior to that, from 2022-2024, Judge Cubas served as an immigration judge at the Hyattsville, Maryland Immigration Court.

Judge Cubas—whose parents are from El Salvador—originally hails from Texas, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2005 from the University of St. Thomas, in Houston, Texas. In 2008, Judge Cubas earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, where she served as a student attorney in the law school’s immigration clinic. Since then, her legal career has been devoted to the field of immigration law, both as a determined advocate and now as an impartial federal administrative law judge.

Her legal practice and public service work has always been in Maryland and the surrounding DMV region. From 2008 to 2009, she was an attorney in private practice. From 2009 to 2011, she was an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow at the Central American Resource Center, in the District of Columbia. From 2013-2022, she held various roles ranging from staff attorney, supervising attorney, program director, to litigation director at the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights (formerly known as the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights (CAIR) Coalition in the District of Columbia and Maryland). In her current role as ACIJ of EOIR, Judge Cubas oversees Maryland’s two immigration courts in Hyattsville and Baltimore, where she supervises over 20 federal immigration judges who hear and decide cases in each of those courts.

Prior to her public service commitment to EOIR, Judge Cubas was deeply revered as a legal advocate in the immigrants’ rights field amongst legal service providers, pro bono law firm partners, private attorneys, judges, agency leaders, the many attorneys she mentored, and most importantly, her clients and their families.

Known fondly by her closest peers at Amica Center as “EncycloClaudia” for her unmatched acumen of legal precedent, Judge Cubas embodies mastery of the law. As impressive are her leadership skills and exceptional record in advancing justice—from securing coalitions to challenge the most difficult of legal battles, to winning the most complicated cases for pro se individuals facing cognitive disabilities and imminent deportation, to often being the first to break down highly complex legal rules into easy-to-understand step-by-step processes so other attorneys could best represent their clients.

Judge Cubas was recently recognized by the Maryland Hispanic Bar Association (MHBA), at the group’s 31st Annual Gala, where she was awarded the MHBA Leadership Award (Premio Liderazgo)—an award reserved to attorneys with distinct and extraordinary accomplishments, specifically commitment to activities that advance the profession and improve society. Judge Cubas’ nomination included the following notation from incoming MHBA President, the Honorable Llamilet Gutierrez, District Court for Prince George’s County, Maryland: “Claudia Cubas has had a brilliant career as a tireless advocate for immigrant rights. She is a fierce Latina, Maryland lawyer, and an accomplished litigator.”

Similarly, a former colleague of Judge Cubas, Adina Appleabaum of Amica Center, stated “[W]hat always moved me most about Judge Cubas is her rare blend of legal mastery with heart-led service and deep passion for and belief in the rule of law and the fight for justice. The values and conviction I've seen her make decisions and act by over the years are stronger than any other lawyer or judge I've ever met.” Today, Judge Cubas uses her legal skills and experience to ensure due process to immigrants facing removal at Maryland’s two immigration courts.


FBA Maryland Chapter Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month Spotlighting Maryland Supreme Court Justice Angela M. Eaves

Season Voelker on LinkedIn: Congratulations Judge Eaves! So incredibly well  deserved!!

On April 12, 2022, Judge Angela M. Eaves was sworn in to serve on the Supreme Court of Maryland in a ceremony officiated by former Governor Lawrence J. Hogan. On accepting the oath of office, Judge Eaves became the first Hispanic to serve on the high court of Maryland. The ceremony capped a trailblazing legal career dedicated to public service in which, along the way, Judge Eaves was routinely breaking new barriers as a “first.”

Judge Eaves was born on April 22, 1959, in the Canal Zone, Panama to a Panamanian mother and African American father. Judge Eaves’ father was a non-commissioned army officer whose military service provided Judge Eaves the opportunity to live in Germany, California, New York, New Jersey and Texas where she began her legal career after receiving her Juris Doctor from the University of Texas Law School in 1986.

Following law school, Judge Eaves worked as an assistant city attorney for Dallas, Texas before relocating to Harford County, Maryland. Judge Eaves was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 1990 and shortly thereafter was hired as a lawyer for the Legal Aid Bureau in Harford County. From 1993 until 2000, Judge Eaves was an assistant attorney general for Harford County where she was tasked with defending correctional officers and state officials in civil suits and took on child-support appeal cases for the Department of Human Resources. From 1995 to 1996, Judge Eaves served on the Harford County Charter Review Commission and from 1995 through 1997 she served as a member of the Human Relations Commission. 

In 1995, Judge Eaves, in her role as assistant attorney general, was involved in a precedent making child-support appeal case, Natasha Wills v. Randy W. Jones, 340 Md. 480 (1995). The Wills case addressed child support obligations of imprisoned parents within the context of the child support guidelines governing “voluntary impoverishment.” The Supreme Court of Maryland concluded that a prisoner is only “voluntary impoverished” as a result of incarceration if the crime leading to incarceration was committed with the intention of becoming incarcerated or otherwise impoverished, but impoverishment should not result in termination of a child support obligation. Judge Eaves advocated that “no court can relieve a parent of the obligation to pay. Even if it is reduced to zero, the obligation is still there.”[1] The ruling effectively prevented incarcerated parents from asking courts to outright terminate their child support obligations.

In 1996, Judge Eaves was awarded the Office of Attorney General’s Pro Bono Award for her tireless work advocating for the legal rights of the less fortunate.

On March 27, 2000, Judge Eaves was appointed to serve as an Associate Judge on the District Court of Maryland, District 9, Harford County. This appointment made her the first African American appointed to the bench in Harford County. On December 28, 2007, Judge Eaves was elevated to the Circuit Court for Harford County. She served as an associate judge from December 28, 2007, to January 26, 2015. On January 26, 2015, Judge Eaves became the first woman administrative judge to head the Circuit Court for Harford County. Judge Eaves served in that capacity until March 23, 2022.

In addition to her service on the Supreme Court, Judge Eaves shares her knowledge and experience as a distinguished jurist through her work as an instructor for the Maryland Judicial College and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.

[1] Brennan, Catherine, “High Court Rules Prisoners Can Seek Child Support Cut,” The Daily Record, 16 November 1995.


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