Banner Witcoff selected four law students as the 2020 recipients of the Donald W. Banner Diversity Fellowship. Created by the firm to strengthen diversity and inclusion in the field of intellectual property law, the fellowship provides recipients with $5,000 for law school tuition or other school-related expenses.
The 2020 recipients are:
- Alaina Pak, a second-year law student at University of Southern California Gould School of Law. She graduated from the George Washington University with a degree in biomedical engineering.
- Emily M. Ross, a second-year law student at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. She earned her undergraduate degree in general engineering from Harvey Mudd College.
- Alessandra Schaszberger, a second-year law student at Georgetown University Law Center. She graduated from Columbia University with a degree in biomedical engineering.
- Malia Taqbeem, a first-year law student at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. She earned her undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from University of Michigan.
As part of the fellowship, the second-year law students will participate in the firm’s upcoming summer associate program.
The Donald W. Banner Diversity Fellowship is open to law students who identify as members of a historically underrepresented group in intellectual property law and meet certain criteria, including academic merit, a commitment to the pursuit of a career in the field, and demonstrated leadership qualities.
Donald W. Banner (1924-2006) — the namesake of the fellowship and firm — was a leader in the field of patent law. A former U.S. Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, he was chairman of the American Bar Association Section of Intellectual Property Law, president of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, a founding member of the Association of Corporate Patent Counsel, president of the International Patent and Trademark Association, co-founder and president of the Intellectual Property Owners Association and director of The John Marshall Law School Center for Intellectual Property Law.
Posted: May 25, 2020
