Following the civil rights movement in the 1960’s, the number of black attorneys continued to grow in San Antonio and around the country. Many of those attorneys were coming from law schools with chapters of the Black American Law Students Association. In total seventeen African-American attorneys would meet on common concerns and issues. These discussions evolved into specific actions and a mission statement to advocate for justice and to open the closed environment of the Bexar County Courthouse.

In the 1970’s a group of seventeen African-American attorneys were concerned about the lack of representation of African-American attorneys in the County and District courts. This group began communications with District Attorney James Barlow seeking the addition of an African-American Prosecutor within his office. These discussions eventually led to the hiring of Andrew Jefferson and later Earl Hill.

Another goal for the group was the appointment and election of judges from both the African-American and Mexican-American communities. The group realized that a formal organization needed to be developed. Attorney Peggy W. Jones led the organizational effort by mailing individual letters to the group of seventeen attorneys. Attorney Clarence McGowan was elected as Temporary Chair of this group of seventeen attorneys. In 1979, Attorney Clarence McGowan was elected as the first President of the San Antonio Black Lawyer’s Association.

The first project of SABLA was the Judicial Candidates Forum. This forum, which is continued to this day, was designed to introduce judicial candidates to the community. In opposition to South Africa’s system of racial apartheid, SABLA also was at the forefront of protesting the State Bar of Texas’ sponsorship of a South African Adventure Tour.