On May 17, MoFo’s New York office welcomed the incoming class of Wetmore Fellows with a kick-off event designed to provide them an opportunity to meet each other, hear from our attorneys, and learn more about the firm. Now in its seventh year, the Keith Wetmore 1L Fellowship for Excellence, Diversity, and Inclusion program recognizes and supports the career advancement of highly motivated first-year law students who are members of historically underrepresented groups in the legal industry.

Ten first-year law students—along with seven returning 2L Fellows—from the top law schools in the country are joining our Los Angeles, New York, Palo Alto, and San Francisco offices for the summer. Along with paid summer associate positions, the incoming Fellows will receive ongoing mentoring and a Fellowship stipend. Fellows will also meet regularly with the D+I team throughout the summer.

In addition to a welcome breakfast, lunch with Managing Partner Craig Martin, and a coffee networking break, the kick-off agenda included panel discussions on how to succeed as an associate and what it is like to be a lawyer in our Corporate, Finance, and Litigation departments.

Sessions included:

• “Succeeding as an Associate”: Janet Herman – director of attorney recruitment and women’s initiatives (moderator), Christina Golden Ademola – NY litigation associate, Robert Webb – SF litigation associate, Mia Akers – LA litigation associate, Jeff Xu – NY finance associate
• “Let’s Make a Deal”: Dario de Martino – NY corporate partner (moderator), Chris Delson – NY finance partner & NY office hiring partner, Ori Solomon – Boston corporate partner & Boston office hiring partner, Tushna Gamadia – NY finance of counsel, Joan Kim – NY corporate associate
• “Pitfalls and Communication”: Nicole Weber – Great on the Job executive MBA/ financial services coach and lead trainer
• “Around the Firm in Three Practices: SLEW, IP, Litigation & TTG”: Amanda Aikman – NY litigation partner, Jerry Gomez – NY litigation associate, Eric Lin – NY litigation associate, Brianna Liang Velasco – SF TTG associate

The fellowship program was established in 2011 in honor of MoFo Chair Emeritus Keith Wetmore, who dedicated much of his time to increasing diversity and inclusion within the firm and throughout the legal profession. Our 2019 fellowship class brings the number of fellowships awarded since its founding to 67.

You can view the full list of 2019 1LWetmore Fellows and returning 2Ls, here.