The Rutgers Law School Asian Pacific American Law Students Association held its annual “MELA” celebration this spring and honored two alumni, Zhenggui “Kevin” LI ‘04, Special Counsel at McCarter & English and Zahid N. Quraishii ‘2000, a partner at Riker Danzig.

MELA is a Sanskrit word that means “gathering.” The event, which was held at the Center for Law and Justice in Newark, celebrated various Asian cultures represented at the law school and honors Asian-American achievements in the legal community.

Li is a member of McCarter & English's Corporate, Securities and Business Transactions practice group as well as a member of the firm's inter-disciplinary International practice group.

He advises large and medium-sized companies in mergers and acquisitions, and counsels companies and their executives on company restructuring, compliance and reporting, and various types of general corporate matters.

Prior to joining the firm, Li worked as an associate engaged in general civil practice, with an emphasis on commercial and bankruptcy litigation. He researched legal issues, prepared pleadings and conducted discovery involving a variety of matters. Li regularly appeared in various state and federal courts in the States of New Jersey and New York. He was recently named an Empire State Counsel Honoree in recognition of his pro bono service.

Quraishi is a partner in Riker Danzig’s White Collar Criminal Defense Group.  His practice focuses on white collar criminal defense, internal corporate investigations, and complex civil litigation.

Before joining Riker, he served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey. He previously represented the United States as an Assistant Chief Counsel and trial attorney with the Department of Homeland Security.  Quraishi also served as a military prosecutor and achieved the rank of Captain in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps.  In the Army, he was assigned to the First Infantry Division stationed in Germany and deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2004 and 2006 before he was honorably discharged.

He also serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the of the C. Willard Heckel American Inn of Court at Rutgers School of Law. In 2014, he was also named a "New Leader of the Bar" by the New Jersey Law Journal. While at Rutgers Law School, he was the Managing Business Editor of the Rutgers Computer and Technology Law Journal and a member of the Rutgers Moot Court Board.

APALSA was established at the law school in 1976 and is dedicated to the admission and retention of Asian/Pacific-American law students, particularly those who will go on to help the legally under served Asian/Pacific-American community. Members work to foster awareness of Asian/Pacific-American legal and social issues within the law school and strive to build ongoing relationships with other groups and students interested in both law and justice. The Rutgers chapter also sponsors joint activities with other east coast student chapters aimed at community education and the development of interest in legal careers among Asian and Pacific-Americans.