Charles R. Lowery Jr. Wins as D.C. Bar President-Elect

June 07, 2022

By Susannah Buell

Charles R. Lowery Jr., director of legislative policy and external affairs at New American Funding, has been elected president-elect of the D.C. Bar for the 2022–2023 term. He will serve in that position for one year starting July 1 before becoming president in 2023. He will continue in office a third year as immediate past president. With Lowery’s installation, incumbent President-Elect Ellen M. Jakovic will become the Bar’s 51st president.

“I am honored to be placed amongst the names of so many great lawyers that have served as president of the D.C. Bar for the past 50 years, and I hope to be able to carry that forward as president-elect and as president in terms of the work they have done to make such a great Bar,” Lowery said.

“I ran on a platform of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility; access to justice; and increasing access for new Bar members. I think that there’s a lot of work that the Bar can do in the diversity, equity, and inclusion area. We must continue the D.C. Bar’s leadership to increase access to justice by all District residents,” Lowery added. “Finally, I am thrilled to now be able to officially promote the Bar's great resources and help connect those resources to our Bar members.”

Lowery has served the D.C. Bar in many capacities, including as co-chair of the District of Columbia Affairs Community, treasurer of the Bar, and member of the Board of Governors. He is currently a member of the Communities Committee and chairs the Best Practices Subcommittee of the Diversity and Inclusion Working Group.

He brings to the position a wealth of experience. At New American Funding, Lowery shapes the company’s legislative and regulatory research and analysis. Building on 20 years of experience in mortgage and housing advocacy, he works with national organizations to advance the company’s mission of increasing homeownership for people of color. Previously Lowery served as director of state regulatory relations for Ocwen Financial Corporation and as interim senior director and director of fair lending for the NAACP. In addition, he was acting director of Military Saves, a program coordinated by the Consumer Federation of America that encourages savings and helps reduce debt among military members.

Lowery has also worked at legal aid and nonprofit organizations such as the Center for Responsible Lending, in the federal government with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the U.S. Department of Defense, in the D.C. government’s Department of Banking and Financial Institutions, and with consumer advocacy groups. He holds an undergraduate degree from Stanford University and a JD from the University of Michigan Law School.

Also elected to one-year terms were, as secretary, Shayan Davoudi of the Shayan Law Office and, as treasurer, Shaun M. Snyder of the National Association of State Treasurers.

Elected to the Bar’s Board of Governors for three-year terms were Rebecca F. Cady of the Children’s National Health System, Karen A. Newton Cole of the Neighborhood Legal Services Program, Andrea Mangones of Kids in Need of Defense, Steven R. Miller of the U.S. Department of Energy, and Roger Lu Phillips of the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre.

Elected for two-year terms on the American Bar Association House of Delegates were Lorelie S. Masters of Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, Laura A. Possessky of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and Lucy L. Thomson of Livingston PLLC.

Of the 85,421 D.C. Bar members who were eligible to vote, 5,398 cast their ballots for a 6.32 percent overall turnout. A complete breakdown of the election results follows.

Members of the D.C. Bar Communities also elected their new set of leaders:

All newly elected officers, board members, and delegates will be recognized at the D.C. Bar Celebration of Leadership on June 23 at the Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel.