Banner & Witcoff, Ltd., a national intellectual property law firm that procures, enforces and litigates intellectual property rights throughout the world, has selected Moriah S. Smoot as the 2017 recipient of the Donald W. Banner Diversity Scholarship for law students.
The scholarship program will provide Ms. Smoot with $5,000 for her upcoming fall semester of law school. She earned a B.S., magna cum laude, in materials and metallurgical engineering from the University of Alabama. She is currently enrolled at the University of Alabama School of Law.
The scholarship is open to all law students who are members of a minority group (including any group traditionally underrepresented in the field of intellectual property law) and who meet the following criteria:
- Current enrollment in an American Bar Association-accredited law school in the U.S.;
- Commitment to the pursuit of a career in intellectual property law;
- Strong communication and writing skills; and
- Demonstrated leadership qualities and community involvement.
“Banner & Witcoff is thrilled to reward Moriah’s commitment to engineering and the law, and her desire to blend her experience in both of these fields by practicing in intellectual property law,” said Banner & Witcoff President Charles L. Miller. “We wish her continued success in law school and her future career.”
Applications for the 2018 scholarship will be made available through the Banner & Witcoff website: www.bannerwitcoff.com.
About Donald W. Banner
Donald W. Banner (1924-2006), a former U.S. Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, was a leader in the field of patent law. 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. He was also a U.S. delegate to numerous international diplomatic conferences. Because of his many accomplishments and the respect he garnered in the field of intellectual property, he was appointed to be U.S. Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks by both Presidents Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter, the only person to be appointed by presidents of both political parties. He served in that office only during the Carter Administration.
Please direct all media inquiries to Amanda Robert at (312) 463-5465 or arobert@bannerwitcoff.com.
Posted: February 20, 2017
