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Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP announced today that its partners who are Harvard Law School alumni will contribute over $1.2 million to the Law School’s Capital Campaign.

The Simpson Thacher contributions will be used to create a scholarship fund in honor of Conrad K. Harper, a Harvard Law alumnus and retired Simpson Thacher partner.  Mr. Harper was Simpson Thacher’s first African-American partner, and as president of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York was instrumental in the creation of the ground-breaking Statement of Diversity Principles, which has been adopted by over 130 New York City law firms and corporate legal departments. Mr. Harper was also the first African-American member of the Harvard Corporation, the University's executive board, and his distinguished public service positions included Legal Advisor at the U.S. State Department, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Board of the New York Public Library, and Chancellor of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. Before joining Simpson Thacher in 1971, Mr. Harper was a litigator with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.

The Simpson Thacher gift will also support the Law School’s Northwest Corner Project, the most ambitious building project in the Law School’s history, and the Law School’s Program on Corporate Governance. Ninety-nine of Simpson Thacher’s attorneys are graduates of Harvard Law School, including 25 current partners. All of the firm’s Harvard Law partners participated in the gift.