Thirteen Law Firms and Corporations Support Diversity Scholarship Program

San Francisco — September 29, 2009 — The California Bar Foundation today announced the awarding of $130,000 in scholarship funding to 23 California law students through its Diversity Scholarship Program. The top thirteen awards are named after top law firms and corporations — Buchalter Nemer, A Professional Corporation, Fenwick & West LLP, Howard Rice Nemerovski Canady Falk & Rabkin, A Professional Corporation, Girardi & Keese, Keesal, Young & Logan, A Professional Corporation, Keker & Van Nest LLP, Lim Ruger Foundation, The Morrison & Foerster Foundation, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Foundation, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal LLP, Southern California Edison, An Edison International Company, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Foundation — that have made multi-year commitments to the Scholarship Program, including $10,000 gifts in 2009.

"Regrettably, California's lawyers do not currently reflect the wonderful diversity of the state's population. By recognizing top minority law students and easing the financial burden of attending law school, the California Bar Foundation's Diversity Scholarship directly addresses this issue and makes these students' path to becoming productive, practicing attorneys a little easier," said Howard B. Miller, President of the State Bar of California and a partner at Girardi & Keese, one of two new sponsors of the Diversity Scholarship Program. "Our support of the Diversity Scholarship is an investment in the future of the legal profession and its ability to meet the needs of clients in an increasingly global economy."

Launched in 2008, the Diversity Scholarship aims to help bolster the pipeline of diverse individuals entering the legal profession. With awards of up to $7,500, the Diversity Scholarship alleviates the significant financial burden of attending law school, which can leave recent graduates more than $100,000 in debt, and provides confidence-boosting recognition to law students during the crucial first year of law school. Recipients, who come from communities underrepresented in the legal profession, were selected from a competitive pool of more than 200 applicants based on academic excellence, financial need, and commitment to the community.

"This year's Diversity Scholarship winners will bring to the practice of law an impressive combination of academic achievement, compelling life experiences, and a deep commitment to giving back to the community," said Mark Parnes, Chair of the Foundation's Scholarships Committee and Assistant General Counsel at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, one of the sponsoring law firms. "The recipients include a future public defender inspired to attend law school by her family members' experiences with the criminal justice system, an asylee from Somalia who wants to specialize in international human rights law, an engineer who intends to combine his legal education with his biotechnology background to expand access to health care, and a community organizer who seeks to improve the lives of working Americans as a labor attorney. They represent the future of the legal profession, and we are proud to recognize and support them."

The Foundation will distribute the Diversity Scholarship awards at a reception featuring Hon. Carlos R. Moreno of the Supreme Court of California on Thursday, October 1, at the offices of Bingham McCutchen LLP in San Francisco. The Foundation will also award $120,000 in Public Interest Scholarships to 28 California law students at the reception.

"Diversity is an integral part of our company's identity, and a diverse workforce is critical to successfully meeting the needs of the communities we serve," said Stephen E. Pickett, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for Southern California Edison. "Our support of the Diversity Scholarship Program is consistent with this belief and reinforces the California Bar Foundation's commitment to increasing diversity in the legal profession. We applaud the 2009 recipients of the Diversity Scholarship and look forward to welcoming them to the ranks of California's attorneys."

The complete list of 2009 Diversity Scholarship winners, by law school, is as follows:

Loyola Law School
Karla Patricia Alcala-Navarrete

Santa Clara University School of Law
Huy Ngoc Tran
Phung H. Truong — Fenwick & West LLP Scholar

Southwestern Law School
Yvonne Garcia

Stanford Law School
LaToya Baldwin-Clark — The Morrison & Foerster Foundation Scholar
Stephanie Mercedes Tennant — Howard Rice Nemerovski Canady Falk & Rabkin Scholar

University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (Boalt Hall)
Kelvan Patrick Howard — Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Foundation Scholar
Jonah Lalas — Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Foundation Scholar
Lisa Magged
Cozette Thanh-Thao Tran-Caffee — Buchalter Nemer Scholar

University of California, Hastings, College of the Law
Alejandro Gabriel Callirgos — Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP Scholar
Noemi O. Gallardo — Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP Scholar
Kamar O'Guinn — Keker & Van Nest LLP Scholar
Sodaba Samad

University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law
Jonathan Thomas Dawson — Girardi & Keese Scholar
Caroline Dessert
Brittany Gibson — Southern California Edison Scholar
Francis Villasenor Guzman
Angelo Arnaldo Mathay — Lim Ruger Foundation Scholar
Kimberlina McKinney

University of San Francisco School of Law
Naeema Aden Ahmed
Daniela Conde — Keesal, Young & Logan Scholar
Michael Fortes

About the California Bar Foundation
The California Bar Foundation is committed to building a better justice system for all Californians. We champion full and equal access to the justice system, invest in the next generation of California's lawyers, educate Californians about their rights and responsibilities under the law, and promote philanthropy throughout the legal community. A nonprofit founded in 1990 and affiliated with the State Bar of California, the Foundation annually awards grants to California organizations conducting innovative law-related projects and scholarships to outstanding California law school students. For more information, please visit our website at www.calbarfoundation.org.

Media Contact:
Leslie Hatamiya
Executive Director
(415) 856-0780 ext. 303
lhatamiya@calbarfoundation.org