News
Latham & Watkins Names Four Diversity Scholars for 2008
Annual Scholarships Promote Equal Opportunity in the Global Law Firm Environment
January 29, 2008...Latham & Watkins LLP1 is pleased to announce the 2008 Latham & Watkins Diversity Scholars, marking the third consecutive year the firm has awarded $10,000 scholarships to four US law school students.
The 2008 Latham & Watkins Diversity Scholars are:
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Cyrus Habib of Yale Law School
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Megan Hall of University of Pennsylvania Law School
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Warren Ko of University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall)
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Toby Lewis of New York University School of Law
See below for biographical sketches of the four recipients.
Following the call for applications for the Latham & Watkins Diversity Scholars Program, which is open to second-year law students for use of the awarded scholarships during their third year of law school, the firm received more than 250 applications from students attending 109 US law schools. Factors considered in choosing the Latham & Watkins Diversity Scholars include academic and leadership achievements, life experiences and challenges that have shaped values, and a desire to practice at a global law firm and contribute to its diversity objectives. The award is not contingent on employment at Latham & Watkins.
"The incredibly talented applicant pool of law students representing diverse race, gender and sexual orientations made this year's selection process extremely difficult. Our Diversity Scholars epitomize the values of leadership, character and ambition that underpin the scholarship program. Their stories of triumph to defy the odds and to rise above great personal challenge are inspiring and show spirit and fortitude. These individuals personify who we sought to recognize and reward when we launched the Latham & Watkins Diversity Scholars program," said Sharon Bowen, Co-Chair of Latham's Diversity Committee, who served on the scholarship selection panel.
"Latham is strengthened enormously by the different races, ethnic backgrounds, cultures and primary languages of our attorneys, paralegals and staff. Previous recipients of the scholarship have told us that it not only defrays the cost of a law school education, but signals the importance of diversity to Latham and is a strong indicator of the firm's open-minded and forward-thinking culture," said Robert M. Dell, Chairman and Managing Partner of Latham & Watkins.
Michele Penzer, Co-Chair of Latham's Diversity Committee and member of the firm's Executive Committee, added: "Our Diversity Scholars program is an extension of the firm's long-standing support and involvement in the initiatives of bar associations to promote diversity in attorney hiring and advancement. In today's global economy, diversity is an integral part of doing business, and our range of diversity initiatives have at their heart the desire to create a culture that values individuality and differences among people."
The Latham & Watkins Diversity Scholars Program is among several firm initiatives designed to promote diversity in the legal profession. Ongoing programs include Latham's annual Diversity Weekend - which facilitates self-identified US law students of color and openly gay law students who have received offers to join the firm to come together with Latham attorneys and firm leaders for three days of substantive discussion, professional training and social events - and additional outreach efforts in the area of recruitment.
Candidates for the Diversity Scholars Program submitted written applications, and several short-list finalists met with a selection panel consisting of partners, associates and members of the firm's management. The applicants were required to be enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school, with intent to practice in a global law firm.
Biographical Sketches of the Scholarship Recipients
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Cyrus Habib - Habib graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Columbia University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Arts in Middle Eastern Studies and English. After obtaining a Master of Letters, English from Oxford University in 2006, Habib enrolled in Yale Law School. He has been bestowed multiple honors including: a United States Congressional Service Award in 2001, a Truman Scholarship in 2002, a Rhodes Scholarship in 2003 and a Soros Fellowship in 2007. Blind since the age of nine, Habib has defied the perceived parameters of his handicap and continues to translate this disability into an advantage. Working under the supervision of Harold Koh, Dean of Yale Law School, Habib authored an opinion article for The Washington Post on American Council of the Blind v. Paulsen, a case that seeks to make US currency accessible to the blind. Complementing this legal advocacy, he also collaborated with Congressman Pete Stark (D-CA) on introducing corresponding legislation and has written a commentary to be published in an upcoming edition of the Yale Law & Policy Review. Habib hails from Kirkland, Washington.
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Megan Hall - As an African-American student, Hall has used her diverse background to challenge others and inspire new ideas. Originally from Springfield, Virginia, Hall attended the University of Virginia where she received a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. Hall is among a growing number of attorneys who combine a strong technical background with legal qualifications, having previously worked as a system engineer for an information technology and service provider where she researched and deployed an internal Wiki (collaborative groupware). From this unique perspective she has conducted research for the Juvenile Law Center in Philadelphia on issues affecting juvenile law and policy and she has worked for the University of Pennsylvania School of Law conducting research on the effect of US tax benefits and write-offs on the adoption of foreign-born children.
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Warren Ko - With unique insights into the Asian-American immigration experience, Ko can relate to the challenges of assimilation and advancement. As an undergraduate at Stanford University, from which Ko graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and a minor in Chinese, he assisted Professor Carolyn Wong with research for her book Lobbying for Inclusion: Rights Politics and the Making of Immigration Policy. Raised on a farm in Rainbow, California, Ko brings to the legal profession a commitment to seeking innovative solutions to problems. As a law student at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, he volunteers his time with the Workers' Rights Clinic and Community Legal Outreach. Additionally, in the fall of 2002, Ko was awarded a Gates Millennium Scholarship, a program initially funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to promote academic excellence and to provide an opportunity for outstanding minority students with significant financial need to reach their highest potential.
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Toby Lewis - A Brooklyn, New York native, Lewis obtained a Bachelor of Science in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University in 2005. At Cornell University, Lewis made the Dean's List during three semesters, was a member of the Quill and Dagger Senior Honors Society and received the Association of the Black Educators of New York Scholarship. He also was awarded the Cornell Tradition Fellowship in 2003 for 250 hours of work and 75 hours of service during the academic year. Lewis is currently a candidate at New York University for both a Juris Doctorate and a Master of Business Administration. In addition, he has served as a volunteer teacher for the New York University High School Law Institute, Co-Chair of the Black Allied Law Students Associate and is a mentor in the New York University Minority Pre-Law Association.
About Latham & Watkins
Latham & Watkins is a global law firm with more than 2,100 attorneys in 25 offices, including Barcelona, Brussels, Chicago, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Milan, Moscow, Munich, New Jersey, New York, Northern Virginia, Orange County, Paris, Rome, San Diego, San Francisco, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Tokyo und Washington, D.C. For more information on Latham & Watkins, please visit the Web site at www.lw.com.
Notes to the Editor
1 Latham & Watkins operates as a limited liability partnership worldwide with an affiliate in the United Kingdom and Italy, where the practice is conducted through an affiliated multinational partnership.
Contacts
Sharon Bowen, Co-Chair of Latham's Diversity Committee, 212.906.1332
Michele Penzer, Co-Chair of Latham's Diversity Committee, 212.906.1245
Skip Horne, Global Recruiting Manager - Diversity and Law School Outreach, 858.523.5459