Robert M. Dell Elected Chair of San Francisco Legal Aid Society

Latham & Watkins' Chairman Takes On New Community Leadership Role

(SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., December 20) The board of directors of the Legal Aid Society - Employment Law Center has unanimously elected Robert M. Dell to be its new chair, effective January 1, 2005. Dell will lead the 65-member board in governance and oversight over a range of legal aid programs for working poor families. Founded in 1916, the LAS-ELC, better known as "The Society," is today the oldest legal service agency west of the Rockies. The organization serves more than 6,000 low-wage and marginalized clients a year through advocacy, social justice litigation, public education, and storefront legal clinics in San Francisco, Berkeley, and San Jose.

Since 1994, Dell has been the firmwide Managing Partner and Chairman of Latham & Watkins, the largest law firm in California. During his tenure as Chairman of Latham, he led the significant growth of the firm during the 1990s up to the present. In his role as the Legal Aid Society's new chair, he succeeds Richard W. Odgers, a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop and former General Counsel of Pacific Telesis, who stepped down after serving two successive two-year terms. "We are fortunate to have someone of Bob's caliber take the reins of the Society," comments Odgers. "He is someone who fully grasps the singular role this organization plays in helping working poor families of all backgrounds and he has the ability to take this organization through its next phases of growth."

"I'm truly honored to have been elected and am looking forward to ensuring the health and vitality of this venerable organization," says Dell. "The Society is a cornerstone of San Francisco's legal and community history, and I'm proud to carry on the private bar's long tradition of involvement and support."

Joan Graff, President of the LAS-ELC, adds, "Bob is not only committed to the principal of equal access to justice; he also has a deep empathy for the plight of our clients and understands the organizational challenges we face in making sure they get the help they so desperately need."

Dell received his J.D. from University of Illinois College of Law in 1977, where he graduated magna cum laude and was Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review. He received his B.G.S. from the University of Michigan in 1974. Prior to entering private practice, Dell served as a law clerk to the Honorable Wilbur F. Pell, Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.



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