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Eric and Rae Piesner have pledged $50,000 to establish the Sam and Helen Piesner Endowed Scholarship for Japanese Legal Studies to assist students enrolled at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s William S. Richardson School of Law. Eric Piesner is managing partner of Morrison and Foerster’s Singapore office and firmwide managing partner with responsibility for Asia. He heads the firm’s market-leading Asia real estate practice.

“I made the gift because I think it is important that WSRSL continue to grow its reputation as a leader in Asia-Pacific focused legal studies in general and Japanese legal studies in particular,” said Eric Piesner ’92. He continued, “The connections between Hawaiʻi and Japan are so deep it is natural that Japanese legal studies should have an important place in the scholarship and curriculum of the Law School. I hope my gift will encourage other alumni and friends of the Law School to add to the endowment so that future generations of students with an interest in Japanese legal studies will be drawn to WSRSL, creating a virtual cycle of students and alumni with ties to Japan and Hawaiʻi.”

The Pacific-Asian Legal Studies Program provides students with an opportunity to learn from renowned full-time faculty specialists in every area of East Asia, including Japan, China and Korea. The program prepares students for future professional engagement with Asian lawyers and clients.

“We are so grateful to the Piesners for their generosity and leadership in establishing this important endowment,” said Dean Aviam Soifer of the law school. He continued, “Our Japanese Law Program has become a valuable launching platform for students interested in Pacific Asian Law with Japan at the center of their focus and many of our alumni are now enjoying meaningful careers throughout Asia.”

To learn about scholarship requirements, read the UH Mānoa news release.

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