Law Student Caroline Bechtel Named Recipient of 2023 Barnes & Thornburg Diversity Scholarship

INDIANAPOLIS – Barnes & Thornburg has named Stanford Law School student Caroline Bechtel as a recipient of its 2023 1L Diversity Scholarship. Bechtel will be a summer associate in the firm’s Indianapolis office.

“I am so excited to spend my summer at Barnes & Thornburg,” Bechtel said. “The firm stood out to me because of its inclusive culture. The attorneys I spoke with are passionate about their work and the legal profession, and they’re kind and welcoming. I’m honored to have the opportunity to learn from them and I can’t wait to join the team!”

Bechtel is a first-year law student who is active in The Federalist Society, Veterans Legal Assistance Program (VLAP) and Christian Legal Fellowship. A graduate of Wellesley College and a native of Indianapolis, Bechtel served in the U.S. Army as an intelligence officer at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and in Bagram, Afghanistan, and Huntington, West Virginia. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Caroline into the Barnes & Thornburg family and to award her our 2023 1L Diversity Scholarship,” Indianapolis hiring partner Kathleen L. Matsoukas said. “Caroline is an exceptional candidate who has demonstrated a strong interest in promoting diversity and inclusion in the legal profession through her professional, academic, and extracurricular activities. We are confident that she will make a valuable contribution to the legal community, and we are proud to support her as she begins her legal career.”

Barnes & Thornburg’s Diversity Scholarship is open to first-year law students with a demonstrated commitment to positive change on the diversity, inclusion and equity (DEI) front and to contributing meaningfully to the DEI goals of Barnes & Thornburg and the legal profession. 

Bechtel also has served as a volunteer the National Veterans Legal Services Program helping to write briefs. 

“We are beyond pleased that Caroline said ‘yes’ to being one of our 2023 1L Diversity Scholars. We are committed to cultivating a strong pipeline of diverse talent and to recruiting top talent from all backgrounds to grow our team. Our goals in this regard are being furthered with the addition of Caroline to our summer program. We look forward to working with her,” said Dawn R. Rosemond, the firm’s diversity partner.

With more than 800 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, Boston, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Philadelphia, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, South Florida, Texas, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews.