Sunstein LLP is pleased to announce that the firm has been selected to receive the American Bar Association’s inaugural Alexander Legal Ambassador Award, in recognition of the success of its Practicum Program in partnership with New England Law | Boston. The award honors a law firm that has “shown a commitment to increasing diversity in the educational pipeline into and through law school.” Managing partner Kerry Timbers will formally accept the award on behalf of Sunstein at the 2023 ABA Annual Conference on February 3.

Through a long-time partnership with New England Law | Boston, Sunstein’s Practicum provides minority law school students with opportunities to earn credits while also learning how to confidently bring their “authentic self” to the workplace. Unlike a legal internship, Sunstein’s Practicum is intentionally designed to give students opportunities to talk with law firm leaders about necessary real-world skills, participate in coaching about career and networking necessities, and to gain mentors who provide “open door access” and will engage in safe, candid discussions.

The Practicum, developed and led by Sunstein Managing Partner Kerry Timbers and Litigation Partner and Chair Lisa Tittemore, is limited to 4-6 students per semester to ensure participants have space and comfort to cultivate real relationships, learn about firm culture and develop their professional identities while also learning needed skills that only experience can afford. Sessions are held at Sunstein’s office and the firm also provides students with offices and conference room space for the full semester.

The ABA’s Alexander Awards are named after Raymond Pace Alexander, the first African American to graduate from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and become a judge on the Common Pleas Court of Philadelphia and Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander, the first African American woman to receive a Ph.D. in the United States and the first woman to receive a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.