The American Bar Association's annual meeting came to a close after the passing of the gavel ceremony this week, symbolically signaling the start of a new year for the ABA with a new president.

Hilarie Bass, who was sworn in Aug. 15, said that she is “very excited at the opportunity to lead the effort to focus on things like access to justice, legal education and diversity in the profession.”

A New York-born and Miami-based attorney, Bass graduated from the University of Miami School of Law in 1981. She is a trial attorney and co-president of Greenberg Taurig.