Law
Student Internships: Housing
Law, Domestic Violence and
Family Law, Public Benefits,
Consumer Law, Appellate Advocacy
The Legal Aid Society has academic
year (fall and spring semester) and
summer internship opportunities for
law students.
Interns assist Legal Aid attorneys in
representing clients in proceedings in D.C. Superior Court and before
public agencies. Interns have the opportunity to interact with
clients and may attend client meetings, hearings, trials and
administrative proceedings. They also may help staff our housing,
consumer and family law court-based projects. Assignments will
include legal research, drafting legal documents and memoranda, and
factual investigation. Interns also participate in internal
meetings and are responsible for some administrative duties.
Legal Aid is divided into four
substantive practice areas:
-
Housing/Landlord
and Tenant –
preventing eviction,
addressing housing code
violations and preserving
affordable housing
-
Public
Benefits – helping
clients access health care
and public benefits
-
Domestic
Violence and Family Law – securing
safety from domestic
violence and achieving
family stability through
custody arrangements and
support orders
-
Consumer
Law – preventing
foreclosure and abusive debt
collection practices
Law student interns are assigned to
one of Legal Aid’s substantive
units. Applicants should express
in their cover letter a preference for
the substantive unit or units in which
they would like to work.
We also have an Appellate
Advocacy Project dedicated to
pursuing an affirmative poverty law
reform agenda before the D.C. Court of
Appeals, with the goal of influencing
the decisional law in a manner that
will protect the rights of low-income
individuals. Internship
opportunities with the Appellate
Advocacy Project are only available
during the summer (only one position
each summer). The Appellate
Advocacy Project internship involves
intense legal research and writing.
Summer interns are expected to work
full time for a minimum of 10 ½
weeks. Academic year
interns are expected to work a minimum
of 12 hours per week, to be arranged
according to their class schedules,
but are welcome to work more hours or
full time for the semester if
available to do so.
How to apply
Please email a cover letter, resume,
writing sample and transcript (can be
unofficial) to Jodi Feldman, Director
of Pro Bono and Intake Programs, at intern@legalaiddc.org.
Undergraduate
Student Internships
The Legal Aid Society has academic
year (fall and spring semester) and
summer internship opportunities for
undergraduate students.
Undergraduate student interns assist
Legal Aid staff in representing
individuals and families in
adversarial proceedings in D.C.
Superior Court and before a variety of
public agencies. Undergraduate
interns are not assigned to a
substantive unit/practice area.
Undergraduate intern responsibilities
include answering telephone inquiries
from persons seeking legal assistance;
filing and retrieving court documents;
greeting potential clients who come to
Legal Aid for assistance; serving
subpoenas; reviewing and organizing
legal files; drafting correspondence;
and, summarizing intake
interviews. Interns participate
in internal meetings and are
responsible for some administrative
duties. Interns also may have
the opportunity to conduct factual
research and investigations, attend
client meetings, and observe hearings
and trials.
Summer interns are expected to work
full time for a minimum of 10 ½
weeks. Academic year
interns are expected to work a minimum
of 12 hours per week, to be arranged
according to their class schedules,
but are welcome to work more hours or
full time for the semester if
available to do so.
How to apply
Please email a cover letter, resume,
writing sample and transcript (can be
unofficial) to Jodi Feldman, Director
of Pro Bono and Intake Programs, at
intern@legalaiddc.org.
