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internal Counsel gives a Second Term on the NAMWOLF Advisory board

November 11, 2004 -- NAMWOLF is very pleased to have Leah Turner serve as a veteran member of our Advisory Council, said Emery K. Harlan, Board Chair of The National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms. As NAMWOLF grows, we are always looking for people and corporations who are committed to supporting our efforts to create greater opportunities for minority and women-owned law firms. Turner added, Qualified minority and women-owned law firms are often difficult for corporations and public entities to reach because they are generally smaller in size than their majority-owned counterparts. Choice Hotels is proud to support NAMWOLF and its cause of ensuring that these law firms are given the recognition they deserve. The NAMWOLF Advisory Council has been established to serve as a consultative and advisory body to provide valuable input to the Board of Directors on matters related to the mission, objectives and goals of the association. In addition, the Advisory Council provides the means for discussing and evaluating NAMWOLF affairs and provides the opportunity for reporting on, exchanging ideas about, and evaluating the activities and programs. Turner earned her B.A. degree in both French and Communications from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA and obtained her J.D. from George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C. Turner serves as an active member of Choice Hotels Diversity Committee. Under the leadership of Michael DeSantis, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary to the Board, Turner has also helped initiate a partnership between Choice Hotels, Street Law, Inc. and a local area high school. Through this partnership, the three organizations have come together to establish a ",diversity pipeline program,", where attorneys from the Choice Hotels Legal Department serve as guest teachers in the high school to help expose the students to the legal profession and act as mentors/role models. Choice Hotels International is one of the world`s largest lodging franchisors, marketing more than 5,000 hotels open or under development in 45 countries under the Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Clarion, Sleep Inn, MainStay Suites, Econo Lodge, and Rodeway Inn brand names. For more information on Choice, visit the company`s Web site at www.choicehotels.com. Street Law, Inc. provides practical, participatory education about law, democracy, and human rights. The Corporate Legal Diversity Pipeline program was developed by Street Law, Inc. and the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) to encourage young people of color to extend their educations and consider law-related careers in the corporate sector. For more information on the program, please visit www.streetlaw.org/pipeline.asp. The National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms (www.namwolf.org) was founded in June, 2001. It is a national trade association comprising a select group of minority and women-owned law firms who exhibit excellence in the legal profession. The primary aim of the organization is to advocate for the utilization of minority and women-owned law firms by major corporations and public entities throughout the United States.