At law firms, companies and other organizations this spring, USC Law alumni rallied their Trojan colleagues to participate in the Law Firm Challenge by making gifts of any size to the law school. By June 30, when the annual competition ended, roughly 70 percent of alumni from 50 competing firms and other organizations had made a gift; 17 firms reached the overall goal of 100 percent alumni participation.
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| Janna Boelke '03 |
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, which boasts 49 USC Law alumni, reached 100 percent participation for the second year in a row. It was also the first Category 1 firm (30+ alumni) to do so. Ken Doran ’81, the firm’s chairman and managing partner, worked with Janna Boelke ’03 to encourage fellow Trojans to meet the challenge.
“I’ve been involved in fund-raising for USC Law since I worked on the inaugural 3L Class Gift campaign as class president,” says Boelke. “It was exciting to be a part of contributing to the future of USC Law. So when Ken asked me to join him as Gibson Dunn’s Law Firm Challenge representative, I immediately said yes.”
Boelke says participating in the challenge is an enjoyable way for alumni to give back to their law school and help ensure that current students continue to receive a first-rate legal education.
“It’s also important to show the greater legal community that the law school has the support of its alumni,” she says. “We especially enjoy competing against UCLA graduates in our firm – it’s a friendly rivalry.”
David Meyer ’88 and Brandt Mori ’06, who led Venable LLP to 100 percent participation, agree that alumni support is a significant measure of a law school’s quality. When deciding to make a gift, Mori says he and his fellow alumni consider the education they received and the contacts they made while at USC Law.
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| Brandt Mori '06 |
“Everyone here attributes much of their success to the Trojan Network,” he says. “Participating in the Law Firm Challenge is a great way to give back to USC.”
Mori also says that the Law Firm Challenge allows alumni to work together in supporting their law school without the individual pressure of making a large gift.
“It’s a great team-building exercise for alumni at firms like Venable to get involved in giving back to the school. If attorneys get involved from the onset of their professional careers, they are more likely to stay committed to the cause.”
Both Boelke and Mori also consider the Challenge a good opportunity for networking with fellow alumni.
“We have alumni in other offices nationwide, so it was fun to be able to reach out to them,” says Boelke. “I am always pleasantly surprised by the great response from our alumni.”
“For Venable, our participation allows us to demonstrate commitment to USC and increase our presence at the law school,” says Mori. “We’re able to engage our competitive spirit, while facilitating recruiting efforts for our firm.”
All participating firms for 2010 are listed below. An asterisk indicates 100 percent participation.
Group I: 30+ Alumni
Gibson Dunn*
Latham & Watkins
O’Melveny & Myers
Paul Hastings*
Sheppard Mullin
Group II: 11 to 30 Alumni
Bingham McCutchen
Hill, Farrer & Burrill, LLP
Irell & Manella
Jones Day
Lewis, Brisbois, Bisgaard
Manatt Phelps & Phillips
McDermott Will & Emery
Milbank Tweed
Morrison & Foerster
Munger Tolles & Olson*
Pillsbury Winthrop
Reed Smith
Rutan & Tucker, LLP
Sidley Austin
Warner Bros.
Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati
Group III: 2 to 10 Alumni
Alston & Bird, LLP
Arent Fox LLP*
Baker & Hostetler*
Covington & Burling*
Crowell & Moring*
Davis Wright Tremaine
Dorsey & Whitney*
Feinberg Mindel Brandt & Klein*
Fisher & Phillips
Glaser, Weil, Fink, Jacobs, Howard & Shapiro LLP
Greenberg Glusker*
Gunderson Dettmer Stough
Hahn & Hahn*
Hodel Briggs Winter LLP*
Howrey LLP
Hunton & Williams
Jackson Lewis
Kirkland & Ellis
Marshack Hays*
Merrill Lynch
Pircher, Nichols & Meeks*
Sinnott, Puebla, Campagne & Curet*
Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal
Stoel Rives
Stroock & Stroock & Lavan
Venable*
Weiland, Golden, Smiley
White & Case*
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