On February 11, 2021, MCBA's annual installation celebration and scholarship fundraiser raised a record-breaking $30,000 in donations and pledges thanks to the generosity of our legal community.

The MCBA Legal Education Scholarship program provides funds to financially disadvantaged Marin students pursuing a law school degree at an accredited California law school with scholarships up to $5,000.



MCBA’s richly-deserving 2020-21 scholarship recipients are:

Jorge Lopez Espindola

Jorge Lopez Espindola is a third-year at the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, where he is the president of the National Lawyers Guild Association, as well as the treasurer of both the Latinx Law Student Association and Lambda Law Students Association. Jorge went to Novato High and is the first person in his family to attend college. He received his undergraduate degree from Sonoma State University in sociology and Chicano & Latino studies.

As a law student, he has been a Dan Bradley Fellow at Legal Aid of Marin, where he assisted staff attorneys in wage theft matters. Jorge has also interned at McGeorge’s Immigration Clinic, assisting clients in immigration matters. Prior to law school, he interned at Canal Alliance, advocating for immigrants and other underrepresented groups.

Samantha Cox-Parra

Samantha Cox-Parra is a first-year at Berkeley Law, where she is a student researcher for the Berkeley Reproductive Justice Project and a conference coordinator for the Berkeley Journal of Entertainment and Sports Law. Samantha attended Terra Linda High and received her undergraduate degree in rhetoric from the University of California at Berkeley, the first in her family to earn a college degree.

Prior to law school, she was a legal intern at the Marin County Public Defender’s Office, a judicial intern at STAR Court with Judge Wood, and a caseworker at the Associated Students of the University of California’s Legal Clinic. This summer she will be a judicial extern for the Honorable Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

As a first-generation professional, Samantha aspires to serve her community, bring change, and build a better society through the justice system.

Samantha Zurcher

Samantha Zurcher is a 3L at UCLA Law, where she serves as a managing editor for the Journal on Environmental Law and Policy, and a writer for the Promise Institute on Human Rights. This is her second year as an MCBA scholarship recipient. She attended San Rafael High School and the College of Marin before transferring to UC Berkeley. She graduated in 2014 with a bachelor of science in conservation and resource studies, focused on environmental engineering.

Samantha has a background in renewable energy development and studied the use of algae for biofuel production and carbon sequestration. Prior to law school, Samantha worked at a public accounting firm, where she helped companies utilize tax incentives for innovative and sustainable research projects. Samantha aspires to represent plaintiffs against perpetrators of environmental crimes, and to champion legal efforts to decarbonize the electric grid.

As a law student, she has clerked at the U.S. Attorney’s office in San Francisco where she assisted in the prosecution of local federal crimes. She has also worked at UCLA’s Environmental Law Institute, supporting faculty with their publications and legal work. These opportunities have cemented her aspiration to pursue a career in environmental law.

If you would like to support the next generation of Marin lawyers, please consider making your tax-deductible donation today.

Thank you to all of our donors for supporting the Legal Education Scholarship Fund.