Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP announced today that Lauren Estell, first-year student at George Washington University Law School, has begun her term as the firm’s Minority 1L Environmental intern.

Estell, who earned herbachelor’s degree in economics and French from Emory University, is participating in the paid internship program spearheaded by the Environmental and Workplace Safety practicein Katten’s Washington, DC office.

“This program was created to provide mentoring, training and exposure to the practice of environmental law to diverse law students. Environmental law careers provide opportunity in an area with a wide range of skills, including litigation, regulatory analysis, client counseling on complex compliance issues and some of the most critical legal issues facing society,” said Steven P. Solow, head of Katten’s Environmental and Workplace Safety practice. “The environmental law bar also has a long history of a lack of diversity. This is one effort to try to address that lack.”

Nadira Clarke, a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and the head of Litigation in the Washington, DC office noted, “We are so pleased to welcome Lauren to Katten for this internship. Lauren’s interest in environmental law, her achievements in law school and her other efforts and achievements made her the outstanding candidate for this position.”

At George Washington University, Estell is actively involved in the Black Law Students Association, Environmental & Energy Law Association, and International Law Society. She is also a member of the sponsorship committee for the annual Patricia Roberts Harris Awards Dinner, which pays tribute to the first African-American woman to hold a White House cabinet position and serve as a US ambassador and dean of a law school.

“This internship is one more example of how invested Katten is in encouraging diverse students to enter the legal profession and advancing diversity within the firm and elsewhere in the industry,” said Katten’s Chief Diversity Partner Leslie D. Minier. “This internship creates opportunities for law students to gain valuable experience by learning from Katten’s environmental practice leaders, building relationships in that space and working with clients.”

Over eight weeks, Estell will gain hands-on experience in the environmental legal space, working directly with firm practice leaders and on projects relating to key environmental, health and workplace safety issues and regulations that major companies, national and regional trade associations, and corporate managers regularly face.

Katten’s Environmental and Workplace Safety team represents major companies in a wide range of industry sectors, including chemical, energy, oil and gas. Collectively, the team, which includes former federal environmental prosecutors, has deep experience in crisis management, internal investigations, administrative proceedings, enforcement actions and other government inquiries, and civil and criminal litigation.

Katten is a full-service law firm with nearly 700 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm’s core areas of practice include corporate, financial services, insolvency and restructuring, litigation, real estate, environmental and workplace safety, commercial finance, intellectual property, structured finance and securitization, and trusts and estates. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, including a third of the Fortune 100, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals. For more information, visit www.kattenlaw.com.