Open Door Fund + Fellowship

The NCBF Open Door Fund and Fellowship demonstrate our ongoing commitment to address inequities in access to legal services and participation in the legal profession experienced by historically excluded or disadvantaged individuals and communities in North Carolina.

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Open Door Fund

As the legal profession in North Carolina grows and its members become increasingly diverse, the NCBF Open Door Fund and Fellowship signals our collective commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and our desire to welcome all who want to serve the people of North Carolina through the legal profession.

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Open Door Fellowship

The NCBF Open Door Fellowship is a unique, competitive opportunity for first-year North Carolina law students. Open Door Fellows gain valuable, hands-on legal experience while widening their professional networks to “open doors” and prepare them for the next steps in their legal careers.

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Thank you to Open Door Fund Founding Donors

We thank our Open Door Champions for Change, Open Door Advocates and Open Door Benefactors for founding this program on the collective commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion to welcome all who want to serve the people of North Carolina through the legal profession.

Founding Donors

Latest Open Door Fund + Fellowship News

2025 Open Door Fellows

The NCBF Open Door Fellowship is a unique, competitive opportunity for first-year North Carolina law students. Open Door Fellows gain valuable, hands-on legal experience while widening their professional networks to “open doors” and prepare them for the next steps in their legal careers. We seek applications from first-year law students who have demonstrated a commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion…

Open Door Fund Donor Perspectives: Three Supporters Share Their Stories

This article originally appeared in the August 2024 issue of North Carolina Lawyer Magazine. Read the complete article written by Russell Rawlings and view all NC Lawyer issues at ncbar.org/nc-lawyer. Every donor has their own reason for contributing to a cause. Even when they are united behind the same cause, such as the Open Door Fund of the North Carolina Bar Foundation,…

Presidents Respond to Open Door Challenge And Extend Challenge to NCBA Membership

This article originally appeared in the August 2024 issue of North Carolina Lawyer Magazine. Read the complete article written by Russell Rawlings and view all NC Lawyer issues at ncbar.org/nc-lawyer. The official launch of the campaign to endow the Open Door Fund of the North Carolina Bar Foundation at the NCBA Annual Meeting included announcement of the $100,000 Presidents’ Challenge. The Presidents’…