Nelson Mullins issued the following announcement on Oct. 22.
Atlanta partners Nekia Hackworth Jones and Wade Malone were honored with a Community Service Award by the Atlanta Bar Association for their leadership on the Atlanta Bar's Summer Law Internship Program (SLIP).
As Co-Chairs of SLIP, along with Natasha Perdew-Silas, Jones and Malone plan and organize the program, select and train interns, and identify hosts and sponsors. The program connects Atlanta high school students with paid, six-week internships. The 2018 program had 49 interns from a record 36 schools. Originally established in 1993, SLIP has facilitated over 735 paid internships since then, providing students with valuable work experience, a deeper understanding of the law, and a mentor relationship.
Jones is a 1995 alum of the program herself and is among 19 former interns of the program who are now lawyers, though there are countless others currently in law school or working from a different angle of the legal field.
"SLIP was a life-changing experience that set me on the path toward realizing my dream — becoming a lawyer,” Jones said. “The SLIP mentors I met while in high school have supported me in every stage of my life and my career. I will forever be grateful to SLIP, its founders, and the members of the Atlanta legal community who selflessly invest in the young people that will shape the future of this profession."
Malone is the chair of the Atlanta office business litigation team and was a co-founder in the internship program in 1993. The summer of 2019 will be the 27th straight summer he has co-chaired the program. Jones handles white collar criminal defense matters, government investigations, and business litigation for Nelson Mullins after carrying out a 10-year career with the U.S. Department of Justice.
Jones and Malone were honored at the Atlanta Bar's 11th Annual Celebrating Service Luncheon on Oct. 19.
Original source can be found here.