ROBERT HALF LEGAL AND MCCA ANNOUNCE 2011 SCHOLARSHIP WINNER: Bryan Lee Named Robert Half Legal Scholar, Granted Tuition Assistance

MENLO PARK, Calif., Jan. 20, 2011  /PRNewswire/ -- Robert Half Legal, a leading staffing service specializing in the placement of lawyers, paralegals and other highly skilled legal professionals, and the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) recently announced the recipient of MCCA's 2010-11 Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship Program. Bryan Lee was named this year's Robert Half Legal scholar and awarded $10,000 to use toward tuition expenses. Raised in Larchmont, New York, Lee is currently a first-year law student at the UCLA School of Law and received a bachelor's degree in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University. He speaks Korean, Mandarin Chinese and Japanese, in addition to English, and is the first in his family to attend college and law school in the United States.

After graduating from college, Lee joined the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund as its voting rights coordinator. In this role, he was responsible for leading poll monitoring programs for the 2008 presidential election in 11 states. He also trained law firm and corporate attorney volunteers to assess language access for voters with limited English proficiency based on protections provided by national voting rights acts, and state and local election laws. During this time, Lee developed an interest in the public sector and engaging corporations to support programs in local communities.

"Bryan is a bright and talented student whose previous work on voting rights issues demonstrates the motivation and leadership skills needed for success in law school and to meet his goal of working for a corporate law firm or legal department," said Charles Volkert, executive director of Robert Half Legal.

MCCA instituted the Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship Program to help further diversity initiatives in the legal profession. The program promotes academic excellence and diversity in law schools by awarding scholarships to newly accepted law students from disadvantaged backgrounds to help defray their legal education expenses.

"In challenging economic times, programs like the Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship that help sustain students in their critical first year of law school are more important than ever," said Lori Garrett, managing director of the southeast region of MCCA. "Support from organizations such as Robert Half Legal enables us to provide scholars the opportunity to interact with mentors to guide their entry into the legal profession and also offer much-needed financial support to ensure they will continue to succeed throughout their law school experience."

Through MCCA's scholarship program, outstanding individuals who have been accepted to an accredited U.S. law school, maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average, demonstrate leadership and a commitment to diversity, and need financial assistance, receive fellowships to support their legal education and professional growth. Each of the scholarship winners is given $10,000 a year for each of their three years of law school. The components of the scholarship program include providing prominent members of the legal community as mentors and MCCA's support in locating first-year and summer legal employment at leading corporate law departments.

About Robert Half Legal

Robert Half Legal is the legal staffing division of Robert Half International. The company provides law firms and corporate legal departments with highly skilled professionals, including lawyers, paralegals and legal support personnel, on a project and full-time basis. For more information about Robert Half Legal, please visit www.roberthalflegal.com.

About The Minority Corporate Counsel Association 

MCCA advocates for the expanded hiring, promotion, and retention of minority attorneys in corporate legal departments and the law firms that serve them. MCCA furthers its mission by publishing research on achieving diversity and best practices in the legal profession, honoring innovative diversity programs with its Employer of Choice and Thomas L. Sager Awards, and assisting diverse law students through the Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship Program.

MCCA's work has been recognized with awards from the National Minority Business Council, Inc., the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Gay and Lesbian Law Association, and the Association of Corporate Counsel. Founded in 1997, MCCA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and also has a Southeast regional office in Atlanta. For more information, go to www.mcca.com.

SOURCE Robert Half Legal