The Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor (SNP) is a one-of-a-kind independent office with jurisdiction throughout the five boroughs of New York City. Created in response to a heroin epidemic and an increase in violent crime, SNP is charged with investigating and prosecuting cases involving felony narcotics. SNP partners with local, state, and federal enforcement agencies to root out narcotics trafficking organizations and offenders. SNP also employs public awareness efforts and treatment programs for offenders to reduce the demand for narcotics and advocate for drug-free lifestyles.
The Position
The Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor seeks an evening student to work full-time as a legal assistant. The legal assistant will be responsible for conducting legal research, developing public service announcements and prevention campaigns, identifying trends in narcotics prosecution and treatment, and preparing legal documents, reports, and public testimony. This is a great opportunity for a current law student to gain practical legal experience in a specialized prosecutor’s office.
The ideal candidate will have strong skills in writing, editing, communicating, and multi-tasking.
The National Association for Law Placement (NALP) is an association of over 2,500 legal career professionals who advise law students, lawyers, law offices, and law schools in North America and beyond. NALP believes in fairness, facts and the power of a diverse community. NALP staff work every day to be the best career services, recruitment, and professional development organization in the world because they want the lawyers and law students they serve to have an ethical recruiting system, employment data they can trust, and expert advisers to guide and support them in every stage of their careers.
A NALP initiative, PSJD is a unique online clearinghouse for law students and lawyers to connect with public interest job listings and career-building resources. As a collaborative project among over 200 American and Canadian law schools, PSJD is a free resource for law students and alumni of our subscriber schools to search among thousands of public interest job opportunities and employer profiles. Public service employer organizations may also post job opportunities for free. In addition to its database, PSJD offers an online library of educational and career-building resources for those interested in pursuing a career in public service. These resources are publicly available to all website visitors.
The Position
NALP is hiring a recent law graduate to serve as the PSJD Fellow for the 2020-2021 academic year. The Fellowship is a unique opportunity for the graduate to manage a small staff, shape priorities for a major project serving public interest organizations, and participate in decision-making and budgeting for a mid-size non-profit at an early stage in his or her career. Because NALP takes professional development so seriously, the PSJD Fellow will have time (and be encouraged) to build relationships with public service employers through daily tasks, public appearances, and pro bono work.
The ideal candidate will graduate before August 2020 and have a demonstrated commitment to public interest work. The candidate will also be proficient in oral and written communication for a variety of audiences, be familiar with social media conventions, and be adept at independent and focused work that often involves juggling multiple tasks at once.
Access to Justice (ATJ) Tech Fellows was created to provide future lawyers with the skills, knowledge, and attitudes they will need to be successful civil justice leaders. To achieve its goals, ATJ Tech Fellows implements an internship program that connects students with participating host organizations and provides a $5,000 stipend to cover summer expenses.
The program begins with Fellows diving into a skills-training bootcamp where they will be engrossed in live training modules for two days. Then fellows will apply their newly acquired skills in their 10-week, full-time internships with participating host organizations. Fellows will also have opportunities for professional development and to contribute their summer experiences to a blog for all Fellows.
Ideal candidates will be passionate about ensuring legal access and eager to learn about the ways legal technology can enhance resources available to low-income individuals and communities.
GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) is a nonprofit organization serving the LGBTQ community in the New England area. Their mission is to create a just society free of discrimination based on gender identity and expression, HIV status, and sexual orientation. GLAD staff achieve their mission through strategic litigation, public policy advocacy, and public education. Because discrimination against LGBTQ people and individuals living with HIV is prevalent in almost all areas of the law, GLAD works in every area to achieve full equality under the law.
The Position
GLAD seeks legal interns! Interested students can apply for term-time or summer internships. Legal interns will assist with active litigation, legislative and public policy advocacy, and public education initiatives.
Ideal candidates will have completed their first year of law school and have excellent research and writing skills. Most importantly, ideal candidates will be dedicated to achieving GLAD’s mission.
The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) is a regional nonprofit organization working to protect the South’s natural resources as well as the health and well-being of Southern people. Their work may center on the Southern region, but the impact of their advocacy and litigation efforts is nationwide. SELC’s programs focus on six areas: clean energy and air; water; forests; the coast and wetlands; transportation; land-use and communities; and wildlife and special places. SELC attorneys and staff work in all branches and all levels of government to ensure that environmental laws are strengthened and enforced, to hold government agencies accountable, and to prevent environmental abuses.
The Position
SELC seeks an associate attorney to begin this fall in their Charleston, SC office. This is a two-year term position with the option for a third year and is perfect for recent law graduates looking to jump-start their careers. The associate will gain invaluable experience litigating and advocating in state and federal courts and before regulatory agencies.
The ideal candidate will have litigation experience and a background in environmental law.
The Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (Institute) is an Oakland-based national non-profit organization that provides resources on domestic violence, sexual violence, trafficking, and other forms of gender-based violence in the Asian and Pacific Islander communities. Not only does the Institute act as a clearinghouse of information, but its staff also provides training, technical assistance, and policy analysis. All of the Institute’s work is done to promote a vision of gender democracy.
The Position
The Institute seeks a law graduate to act as a Program Coordinator of the Improving Language Access in the Courts project. The Coordinator will be asked to collaborate with senior staff and national partners to develop trainings, translation guidance tools, and an iconography resource guide that will address the needs of individuals with limited English proficiency in the legal process.
The ideal candidate will have experience with the development and management of complex projects and programs, knowledge of gender-based violence, and experience with legal professionals and judicial processes. Additionally, it is preferred that the candidate be bilingual or bi-literate in an Asian or Pacific islander language.
The Migrant and Immigrant Community Action (MICA) Project is a Missouri-based nonprofit organization that provides low-cost immigration legal services. Their goal is to combine outreach with legal services to promote the voice and dignity of immigrant communities and to provide information and resources before legal issues arise.
The MICA Project’s legal services include family immigration matters, naturalization, removal defense, and asylum and refugee issues. Additionally, the MICA Project team provides legal services and resources to survivors of domestic violence.
The Position
The MICA Project seeks a Bilingual Staff Attorney to represent clients in benefits proceedings before USCIS and in removal proceedings in Immigration Court. Additionally, the staff attorney will participate in the MICA’s Projects community outreach and Know Your Rights efforts. The staff attorney will also be responsible for preparing all documents required for cases and applications, supervising volunteers and interns, participating in trainings on changes in immigration law, building relationships in the profession and the community, and tackling any other assigned tasks.
The ideal candidate will have experience in immigration law, whether that experience come from professional practice or clinic and externship work completed during law school. The ideal candidate will also have excellent verbal and written communication skills, the ability to work with a team, and enthusiasm for working in an evolving legal atmosphere where crisis situations are common.
Third Way is a national center-left think tank that believes in mainstream American values of opportunity, freedom, and security. Their work focuses on high-impact advocacy campaigns that combine policy research with an inclusive understanding of the American middle. The issues Third Way currently advocate for span topics of climate and energy, economics, education, health care, national security, politics, and social policy.
The Positions
Third Way seeks policy fellows to work in four areas: National Security, Economics, Social Policy and Politics, and Climate and Energy. These fellows will join dedicated and dynamic teams seeking to make real change in their advocacy focus-areas.
The ideal candidates will be able to work both independently and collaboratively, take initiative on projects, know how to explain complicated concepts in a clear and understandable way, and have strong research, analysis, and writing skills.
A Heartland Alliance initiative, the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) provides direct legal services to and advocates for the immigrant, asylum seeker, and refugee communities. The NIJC is dedicated to ensuring these communities have access to justice and human rights protections. NIJC accomplishes its goals through the hard work of dedicated staff and pro bono attorneys in Illinois, Indiana, and Washington, D.C. To date, the NIJC provides legal services to more than 10,000 individuals each year with a success rate of 90 percent in obtaining asylum for its clients.
The Position
The NIJC seeks a staff attorney for its LGBT Immigrant Rights Initiative to provide representation to LGBTQ immigrants and asylum seekers as well as individuals living with HIV/AIDS. The attorney’s primary duties will involve conducting intake interviews, developing and implementing case strategies, representing individuals in hearings and interviews, maintaining professional relationships with relevant government agencies, social service organizations, and community organizations, and much more.
The ideal candidate will be able to remain calm in emotional situations; to communicate well in speech and in writing; to think analytically, creatively, and strategically; and to display passion and optimism in upholding NIJC’s mission.
The New York State Office of the Attorney General (NY OAG) is both the “People’s Lawyer” and the State’s chief legal officer. The NY OAG not only guards the legal rights of New York citizens, but it also advises the State government and defends the State in proceedings. The NY OAG is charged with the statutory and common law powers to protect consumers and investors, charitable donors, the public health and environment, civil rights, and the rights of wage-earners and businesses across the State. The NY OAG also investigates organized crime and Medicaid fraud. The NY OAG is divided into five primary divisions: Appeals and Opinions, State Counsel, Criminal Justice, Economic Justice, and Social Justice. With over 650 Assistant Attorneys General and 1,700 employees, the NY OAG is one of the largest public interest law firms in the country.
The Position
The NY OAG seeks law students to participate in its full-time, paid summer internship program. Interested students may apply to specific divisions and regional offices for consideration. Students will assist in all phases of attorneys’ work, including legal research, court filings, discovery, and trial preparation.
The ideal candidates will have finished their first semesters of law school and demonstrate an interest in public service.
Get a weekly summary of news items that affect the public service legal community, with an emphasis on funding, job market, law school initiatives, and access-to-justice developments.
