LEGAL NEWSLINE

McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC issued the following announcement on Mar. 7.

McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC is pleased to announce three Ohio Black-owned businesses as clients of the firm, each of whom have received a grant of one year’s worth of legal services through the firm’s Legal Equity Advancement Program (LEAP). The announcement will be made public at a kickoff lunch on March 7, 2022.

The 2022 Ohio Legal Equity Advancement Program recipients include:

• Flavor 91 Bistro – a family-owned and operated dining establishment in Whitehall, serving healthy American fare with Ethiopian flair. Meals are cooked from scratch and contain locally sourced organic ingredients.
• Color Coded Labs – partnering with Ohio businesses and providing a 16-week tech & coding boot camp for students, the company’s program aims to remove barriers for enrollment and career transition, and opens doors for job placement with great companies dedicated to diversity.
• Nia Studio – providing a space and a technology-based business platform to small business entrepreneurs in the King-Lincoln district, Nia Studio is a destination for services that include movement art classes, yoga, meditation, dance and fitness.

In its debut year in Ohio, the McNees Legal Equity Advancement Program is aimed at building relationships in the community of Black-owned and Black-operated businesses to understand and help overcome barriers that may be attributed to institutional racism. Recipients have access to nearly every practice area at McNees to provide legal services that will support their business objectives.

“As we mark the launch of LEAP in Ohio, we are honored to include these strong and creative companies among our clients and excited to learn more about their businesses and their impact in Ohio and their local communities,” said Ohio’s LEAP Task Force Member Diane Dobrea.

Drawing from dozens of Ohio applications, representing a wide array of established and fledgling Ohio businesses, this year’s group of LEAP clients stood out for their business tenacity and technical expertise in their field, deep engagement in the local community and demonstrated need for sophisticated legal services.

“Together with our 2022 Ohio LEAP clients, we welcome all LEAP applicants to participate in our 2022 legal and business information sessions, and we hope to see applications from them next year,” said Dobrea.

The expansion of LEAP is not limited to Ohio; the program in Pennsylvania counts six 2022 and five 2021 LEAP clients, and further expansion plans are underway.

“We are also excited to share that LEAP is in growth mode. We plan to launch the program in other markets where we have offices, including areas in and near Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Pa., and Frederick, Md.,” said LEAP Co-Chair Esch McCombie.

Original source can be found here.