It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our friend and colleague, Renee Inomata, a partner in the Employment Law Group at Casner & Edwards. Renee joined the firm in 2018 and quickly became a beloved and valuable member of the Casner team.
“Renee was a trusted advisor, mentor, teacher, and friend,” said Casner Managing Partner Michael Zullas. “She had a unique ability to bring people together and bridge differences. Her calm, steady presence guided colleagues and clients alike through moments of complexity and challenge. She led with kindness, wisdom, generosity, and an unwavering commitment to doing what was right. It is a deeply personal loss for all of us.”
Renee was a true trailblazer and role model. At Casner, she helped pioneer the firm’s widely respected Women’s Initiative as a way to advance the interests of both Casner women attorneys and clients. She led the firm’s commitment to inclusive excellence, including outreach to law students and new lawyers, and launched the firm’s law school externship program. During the COVID-19 crisis, she was a leader in helping clients understand the ever-changing regulatory landscape. She also established “HR Connect,” a virtual roundtable where HR professionals discussed pressing issues, and spearheaded a cross-disciplinary, thought leadership initiative to provide clients with legal and regulatory workplace issues information.
Though she was never one to call attention to her accomplishments, Renee was one of the most distinguished members of the Boston Bar, and she was widely respected for her contributions to the Boston Bar Association and the Boston Bar Foundation. Over the course of her career, she was repeatedly recognized for excellence, leadership, and service, including the Asian American Lawyers Association of Massachusetts, Community Service Award (2023) and Get Konnected, Boston’s 50 Most Influential Asian-American Pacific Islanders (2023). She was also regularly named to prestigious legal rankings, such as The Best Lawyers in America, Massachusetts Super Lawyers, Boston Magazine, Top Lawyers, and Thomson Reuters’s Stand-out Lawyers.
Renee was equally committed to service beyond the legal profession. She held numerous leadership and advisory roles with organizations that shaped the cultural, educational, and civic landscape:
- Chair, GBH Board of Advisors
- Chair, Brown University President's Diversity Advisory Council
- Advisory Board Member, Babson College Center for Women's Entrepreneurship and Leadership WINLab Program
- Trustee, Boston Bar Foundation
- Co-chair, Nominating Committee of WGBH Board of Advisors
- WGBH Board of Overseers
- Past Member, Board of Governors, Brown University Alumni Association
- Past Co-president, Brown Club of Boston
- Past Board Member, Harvard Square Business Association
- Past Chair, Massachusetts Asian American Commission
- Past Member, Asian American Commission Economic Development Committee.
“Renee had a huge impact on our firm and on the Boston legal landscape,” said Casner colleague and friend, Katie Von Kohorn. “She will be sorely missed, both professionally and personally. Our thoughts today and in the days and weeks ahead are with Renee’s husband, Paul, and her extended family and friends.”
