H.S. juniors participate in Project SELF summer internships with law firms

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

54 High School Juniors Participate in Project SELF Summer Internship with OC Law Firms and Legal Businesses

IRVINE, CA—With the opportunity to participate in a day in court, work alongside lawyers, learn office skills, and be exposed to professional career fields, 54 students have been placed as interns throughout 44 Orange County law firms and law-related businesses through the Project SELF (Summer Employment in Law Firm) program, which provides low-to-middle income high school juniors with a hands-on summer internship.

The paid, eight-week internship will begin Tuesday, June 18, 2013.

Participating law firms include:

· Fisher & Phillips LLP, Irvine, named among the 2013 “Best Law Firms” by U.S. News – Best Lawyers

· Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, Irvine, an international firm named as one of the “Top 100 Law Firms for Diversity” by MultiCultural Law Magazine in 2012

· Rutan & Tucker, LLP, Costa Mesa, the largest full-service law firm in OC

Interns will participate in a Career Day at the University of California, Irvine on July 8, 2013, featuring a welcome from the Founding Dean of UCI School of Law Erwin Chemerinsky, a tour of the law school, and a career day panel, and will also participate in a day in court on July 9, 2013, with the opportunity to watch defendants enter pleas before judges and also to partake in a mock trial.

Since its inception in 1995, 673 students have participated in the Project SELF program.

For Project SELF questions, contact Nancy Garcia, OCBF Associate Director, (714) 480-1925 ext. 108 or ngarcia@ocbarfoundation.org

For media inquiries contact Jess Block, Publicist, 909-706-8525 or JessBlockPR@gmail.com

ABOUT PROJECT SELF: Project SELF (Summer Employment in Law Firm) provides low-to-middle income Santa Ana high school juniors with the opportunity to have an eight-week, paid summer internship at a law firm or law-related business while gaining valuable educational and work experience. The program is a collaboration between two non-profits: the Orange County Bar Foundation (OCBF) and the Orange County Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators (OC-ALA). The Orange County Bar Association (OCBA) assisted in Project SELF’s inception in 1995 and has continued to support the program. Since its inception, 673 students have participated in Project SELF. The annual Project SELF Recognition Dinner will be held Wednesday, August 7, 2013 at the Hilton Irvine. http://www.ocbarfoundation.org/programs/project_self.html

ABOUT ORANGE COUNTY BAR FOUNDATION (OCBF): OCBF is a non-profit organization committed to keeping at-risk youth out of jail, in school, healthy and drug free through education, counseling and mentoring. http://www.ocbarfoundation.org/

ABOUT ORANGE COUNTY CHAPTER OF THE ASSOCIATION OF LEGAL ADMINISTRATORS (OC-ALA): OC-ALA is a membership association that provides educational and networking opportunities to improve the quality and competency of legal administrators. OC-ALA has more than 145 members in the Orange County area and is a chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators, which consists of over 10,000 members worldwide. http://www.orangecountyala.org/

ALL 2013 PARTICIPATING PROJECT SELF LAW FIRMS AND LAW-RELATED BUSINESSES INCLUDE:

Costa Mesa:

• Bohm Matsen LLP

• Latham & Watkins LLP

• Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

• Michael Maguire & Associates

• Paul Hastings LLP

• Rutan & Tucker, LLP

• Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

• Snell & Wilmer LLP

• Woodruff, Spradlin & Smart, APC

Irvine:

• Allen Matkins

• Brown Rudnick LLP

• Carothers DiSante & Freudenberger LLP

• Crowell & Moring LLP

• Dorsey & Whitney LLP

• Fisher & Phillips LLP

• Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP

• Haynes and Boone, LLP

• Hodel Briggs Winter LLP

• Jones Day

• Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear LLP

• Malcolm Cisneros, A Law Corporation

• McDermott Will & Emery

• Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP

• Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP

• Palmieri, Tyler, Wiener, Wilhelm & Waldron LLP

• Payne & Fears LLP

• Samuels, Green & Steel, LLP

• Wesierski & Zurek LLP

Newport Beach:

• Cresa Orange County

• Irell & Manella LLP

• Minyard Morris LLP

• Newmeyer & Dillion LLP

• O’Melveny & Myers LLP

• Orange County Bar Association

• Robinson Calcagnie Robinson Shapiro Davis, Inc.

• Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, PC

• Travers Realty Corporation

• Wright, Finlay & Zak, LLP

Santa Ana:

• AlvaradoSmith, APC

• First Legal Network

• Green & Hall

• Legal Aid Society of Orange County

• Orange County Superior Court

• Traut Firm