Brooks Pierce is pleased to announce that it is accepting applications for the 2021 Chief Justice Henry E. Frye – Brooks Pierce Diversity Summer Fellowship, created to increase opportunities for underrepresented minorities in the practice of the law.
The fellowship is open to a student from an underrepresented racial or ethnic minority enrolled in a full-time law program at an American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law school, expecting to graduate in 2023, with plans to practice in North Carolina. It includes a salaried summer associate position in one of Brooks Pierce’s three offices during the summer of 2021 and a $10,000 scholarship.
“Brooks Pierce is proud to continue the tradition of honoring the outstanding career of former Brooks Pierce attorney and Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, Henry Frye, with this Fellowship opportunity,” said Reid Phillips, Brooks Pierce’s managing partner. “We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment within the firm and the surrounding communities.”
Frye, who retired from Brooks Pierce in 2016, broke many racial barriers during his long and storied career. In 1963, he was appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina, one of the first Black persons to be appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney in the South. In 1968, Frye became the first Black person to be elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives in the 20th century. He served in the state House for 12 years and was then elected to a two-year term in the North Carolina Senate. In 1983, Frye became the first Black person appointed to the Supreme Court of North Carolina, and in 1999 he was appointed Chief Justice, another first. When he left the bench in 2001, Frye returned to private practice, joining Brooks Pierce, where he focused on appellate advocacy, mediation and commercial arbitration.
The deadline for application submissions is Jan. 15, 2021. For more information on the fellowship, click here.
