ABA John J. Curtin, Jr. Justice Fund Summer Legal Internship Program
The Curtin Justice Fund Legal Internship Program is seeking motivated law student interns to apply for stipends available for the Summer Program. These students should have a position offered, contingent on funding, from a qualified organization.
Internship:
The Curtin Justice Fund Legal Internship Program is managed jointly by the ABA Commission on Homelessness and Poverty and the Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defendants. The Program will pay a $2,500 stipend to three law school students who spend the summer months working for a bar association or legal services program designed to prevent homelessness or assist homeless or indigent clients or their advocates. The Legal Internship Program will provide much needed legal assistance to organizations serving the under-represented and give students direct experience in a public interest forum. Through this, it aims both to help homeless clients and to encourage careers in the law that further the goals of social justice.
Intern Requirements:
The ideal intern will have a demonstrated interest in public interest law and experience working with poor people or on issues affecting them. All law students are eligible, and first-year law students are encouraged to apply. The intern must commit no less than eight continuous weeks between May 1 and October 1 to the program of his or her choice. Applicants must submit the application to the Curtin Internship Program, American Bar Association Commission on Homelessness and Poverty,740 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005.
All applications must be received by Monday, March 26, 2012. Early submissions are welcome.
Program Requirements:
Qualified organizations include bar association programs, legal services programs and nonprofit organizations which have programs dedicated to meeting the legal needs and concerns of homeless and indigent people and their advocates. To be considered, programs must have been operational for at least one year and must have an attorney on staff or easily available to supervise the intern.
A lawyer in the program (either a volunteer or paid attorney) must supervise the intern, and the program must assure theABAthat it will give the intern substantive law experiences with clients and with preparing legal documents and so forth.
Application Process:
Each applicant shall submit a cover letter, resume, application form and a prospective program’s supporting statement. Please be specific about the issues on which you plan to focus and what you hope to accomplish.
Evaluation Process:
Both the intern and the program will be expected to submit to the ABA Commission on Homelessness and Poverty and the Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defendants reports on the summer internship experience. These evaluations are due within four weeks of the conclusion of the internship or by September 30, 2012, at the latest. The intern should assess the quality of the supervision received, describe whether the written work assigned was challenging, discuss the opportunities to work with clients, and include a summary of what the student learned from the experience. The program supervisor should describe the student’s contributions to the program and provide feedback as to what skills and abilities the Curtin Justice Fund Legal Internship Program should look for in future interns.
For More Information:
For additional information, please contact the ABA Commission on Homelessness and Poverty, or visit the ABA Commission on Homelessness and Poverty’s website to obtain an application.