James O’Donnell, a third-year student at Lewis & Clark Law School, is a recipient of the annual Moe M. Tonkon and Frederick Torp Scholarship for 2015-16. Lewis & Clark Law School dean Jennifer Johnson and associate dean Libby Davis selected O’Donnell to receive the scholarship based upon his consistent academic excellence during his law school tenure.
O’Donnell is expected to graduate in December 2016. He is currently gaining legal experience by working part-time as a law clerk. O’Donnell is also lead article editor on the Lewis & Clark Law Review, and works as a research assistant for Professor Meg Garvin. After graduation, O’Donnell plans to stay in Portland and build his career in business, employment and intellectual property litigation. He earned his B.A., magna cum laude, in geography from the University of South Florida.
The Moe M. Tonkon and Frederick Torp Scholarship encourages the development of young attorneys who demonstrate exceptional aptitude for the law and professional promise. Tonkon Torp established the annual scholarship in 1987 in memory of founding partner Moe Tonkon, who was a 1928 alumnus of Lewis & Clark Law School (formerly Northwestern School of Law). In 2003, the firm enhanced the scholarship to also honor co-founder Frederick Torp, who died that year.