July 11, 2013 at 4:04 pm
· Filed under Expert Opinion: Interviews and More
by Ashley Matthews, PSJD Fellow
Editor’s note: Our “Expert Opinion” series offers thoughts, insights, and career advice from public interest lawyers, law students, and others who work for the public good. This edition’s Expert is Adriana Dinis, a staff attorney with Gulfcoast Legal Service’s CHILD program. Dinis was a featured speaker at the 2013 Annual NALP Conference, and her journey to advocating for the rights of immigrant children was incredibly inspiring. On to the interview…
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July 10, 2013 at 5:39 pm
· Filed under Public Interest Jobs
From the PSJD job posting:
With generous funding support from the John T. Gorman Foundation, Pine Tree announces the availability of a two-year attorney fellowship position, starting September 2013. The position is intended for an attorney with less than 3 years of experience (including clerkships). The fellowship will be housed within Pine Tree’s KIDS LEGAL project and will focus on advocacy, training and outreach specific to the educational needs of low-income youth in public high schools, with the goal of helping them better prepare for successful adulthood. The position can be housed in any one of the following Pine Tree offices: Lewiston, Augusta, Bangor, Machias or Presque Isle. (The Portland office does not have space to accommodate the position.) Read the rest of this entry »
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July 10, 2013 at 12:02 pm
· Filed under Events and Announcements
by Ashley Matthews, PSJD Fellow
If you’re interning or working in Washington, DC for the summer, and interested in affordable housing litigation, this one’s for you!
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July 9, 2013 at 4:58 pm
· Filed under Public Interest Jobs
by Ashley Matthews, PSJD Fellow
The Urban Justice Center’s Street Vendor Project focuses on protecting the rights of the largest group of small business owners in New York City: the 10,000+ retailers that struggle to make ends meet by selling everything from hot dogs to books on the streets of the Big Apple. Most street vendors are recent immigrants and people of color who are vulnerable to discrimination despite being hardworking entrepreneurs.
The Street Vendor Project is on the front lines to change the NYC system of oppression and provide access to legal services for street vendors. Want to join them? Read on to see their job description from PSJD.org:
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July 9, 2013 at 1:29 pm
· Filed under Career Resources, Expert Opinion: Interviews and More, Public Interest Jobs
by Kristian Smith, PSJD Summer Projects and Publications Coordinator
This article is part one of a two part series about alternative public interest work. Check back next week for Part Two: Private Public Interest Firms.
When many law students and new lawyers are beginning to plan for their careers, they usually have to make a choice between working at a law firm or practicing public interest work. While law firms and public interest work are typically viewed as mutually exclusive, there are many ways for law students and new lawyers to do public interest work while still gaining training and experience at a law firm.
Many large, traditional law firms now have opportunities for attorneys to work on public interest projects while still receiving the training and resources that come along with large firms. With OCI and summer associate hiring fast-approaching, this is something for law students to keep in mind when looking for jobs.
Erica Knievel Songer, an associate at Hogan Lovells, has had a unique experience as a law-firm associate who has been able to spend much of her time at the firm working solely on pro bono projects. Songer said that Hogan’s pro bono practice has a rotation process for junior and senior attorneys to work solely on public interest work for a year at a time. She said that she has been able to work on many different types of cases – from housing to voting rights – and that her firm encourages all attorneys to practice pro bono work. She said that doing public interest work at a law firm, as opposed to a non-profit or legal services agency, provides a wealth of resources that make it easier to make a difference in the lives of others.
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July 9, 2013 at 11:56 am
· Filed under Events and Announcements, News and Developments, Public Interest Jobs
by Ashley Matthews, PSJD Fellow
Post-graduate fellowship application season has officially begun!
The 2014 Equal Justice Works Fellowship Application opened yesterday, kick-starting the search for innovative public interest law projects that help close the American justice gap and provide legal assistance to those in need. Applications will close on September 17, 2013.
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July 2, 2013 at 9:09 am
· Filed under Expert Opinion: Interviews and More
It’s tough to “network.” Most folks don’t even have a good idea as to what networking is. The following from our friends at the Government Executive Magazine is a great road map for success at all those summer functions you’ll be delighted to attend.
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July 1, 2013 at 4:41 pm
· Filed under Public Interest Jobs
From the PSJD job posting:
Law students graduating in 2014 are invited to apply for a two-year juvenile indigent defense fellowship at National Juvenile Defender Center (NJDC) in Washington, D.C. starting in September 2014.
The Gault Fellowship is named for Gerald Gault, the juvenile petitioner in the seminal U.S. Supreme Court case In re Gault. The Gault decision extended many of the same due process protections afforded adults accused of crimes, including the right to counsel, to juveniles. Gerald is still active in the juvenile justice community and serves as an honorary board member of NJDC.
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