Farella Braun + Martel’s Diversity Program Honored by State Bar
Firm's Pioneering and Continuously Expanding Efforts Draw Legal Industry Attention
SAN FRANCISCO (Sept. 10, 2010): Farella Braun + Martel LLP has been selected by the State Bar of California as its 2010 law firm Diversity Award recipient, an honor that recognizes the firm's "sustained, long-term commitment" to advancing diversity in the legal profession.
"We are deeply honored by the State Bar's recognition of our diversity efforts and appreciate the nomination by the Bar Association of San Francisco, which itself has been at the forefront of diversity initiatives," said managing partner Steve Lowenthal. "We have a tremendous appreciation for and commitment to diversity, and hope that some of our innovative programs and efforts will be used by other firms as we all continue to foster and celebrate diversity in the profession."
The State Bar Diversity Award is given annually to an individual, bar association and law firm. To be selected, firms must have at least one office in California and have shown a demonstrated commitment to "recruitment, retention, and advancement of diverse attorneys."
Spearheaded by its active Diversity Committee, which was established in 2001, some of Farella Braun + Martel's diversity efforts include: the innovative Diversity Pipeline Internship Program and its Diversity Scholarship Program, and ongoing efforts to recruit diverse attorneys and staff to create a firm culture where diverse attorneys thrive, advance and become leaders in the legal profession. All are further supported by the firm's active involvement in diversity-focused organizations, such as the California Minority Counsel Program and U.C. Hastings College of the Law's PAR (Project for Attorney Retention) program.
The Diversity Pipeline Internship Program, among the first to focus on recruitment at the high school level, offers diverse and/or disadvantaged students a summer internship program with the opportunity to learn, hands-on, about the legal profession through robust curriculum, developed and implemented in-house by both diverse and majority attorneys, and through mentoring relationships with both attorneys and staff members. These relationships continue into the school year to support the students through the college application process. Since its inception in 2007, all of the high school interns in the program have either graduated from high school and are now enrolled in college, or are finishing high school and are applying to college.
At the law school level, the firm's Diversity Scholarship Program awards five grants annually to first-year Bay Area law students from socially and ethnically diverse backgrounds. As of May 2010, Farella has awarded nearly $200,000 in the program's 10-year history.
The California State Bar Association Diversity Award will be presented to Farella Braun + Martel LLP on Sept. 25 at the State Bar's 83rd Annual Meeting in Monterey, Calif.
Farella Braun + Martel represents clients throughout the United States and abroad in sophisticated business transactions and high-stakes commercial, civil and criminal litigation. Founded in 1962, the firm is headquartered in San Francisco and maintains an office in the Napa Valley focused on the wine industry. Farella Braun + Martel lawyers are known for their imaginative legal solutions, dynamism and intellectual creativity. With an unwavering service ethic and interdisciplinary team approach, the firm is committed to advancing clients' objectives in the most effective, coordinated and efficient manner. Farella Braun + Martel is a green business. www.fbm.com
Contacts:
Michael Bond / Traci Stuart
Blattel Communications
415.397.4811
[email protected] / [email protected]
Cheryl Loof
Farella Braun + Martel LLP
415.954.4433
[email protected]
