Published: Oct. 2, 2013

University of Colorado Law School and Patton Boggs Foundation Join Forces to Help New Lawyers with Fellowship

Through a joint program supported by the Patton Boggs Foundation and the University of Colorado Law School, Dietrich Hoefner, who earned his JD from the school in May, has been awarded the Patton Boggs Post-Graduate Fellowship in Energy Law and Policy.

Since 2005, the Patton Boggs Foundation has provided fellowships to open the field of public policy to new lawyers with a demonstrated interest in public service, by providing them with opportunities to spend their summers working for either government organizations or nonprofits on public policy matters. This is the first time that the Patton Boggs Foundation has teamed up with a law school to jointly fund a post-graduate fellowship.

Hoefner plans to use the funds for work at the Colorado Department of Law’s Office of Consumer Counsel Unit, where he will focus on natural gas and electricity issues that currently face the state. Specifically, Hoefner will explore proceedings related to the city of Boulder’s move to create a municipal electricity utility.

"Thanks to the generous support of the Patton Boggs Foundation and Colorado Law School, this fellowship provides the opportunity to work alongside the talented attorneys and staff who dedicate themselves to serving the people of Colorado," said Hoefner. "As a new law school graduate I still have much to learn, and I am excited to be involved in proceedings that will have a real and lasting impact on the Colorado energy landscape."

“The more than 125 fellowships that the Foundation has funded over the past eight years provide special opportunities for law students across the United States and around the world to do important public policy work,” said John Oberdorfer, president of the Patton Boggs Foundation and partner at Patton Boggs. “We are excited to join with Colorado Law to expand our program and support the innovative work that Dietrich is doing.”

“Colorado Law, under our Action Plan, is committed to engaging with our community and key partners to develop opportunities for our students and recent graduates,” added University of Colorado Law School Dean Phil Weiser. “The generosity of the Patton Boggs Foundation and its creativity in developing this important pathway for a recent graduate like Dietrich is commendable and highlights how such partnerships can simultaneously enhance our community and support recent graduates.”

Peter Gould, Managing Partner of Patton Boggs’s Denver office, summed things up: “Patton Boggs and the Patton Boggs Foundation are proud of our long-standing relationship with Colorado Law and are extremely pleased to enhance its programs and the experience of its graduates with this fellowship. We congratulate Dietrich and thank him for his commitment to public service in and beyond Colorado.”