This Week at the CDO

Monday, March 2, 2009

DEADLINE TO APPLY FOR CEPS SUMMER FELLOWSHIP (1L students)
The deadline to apply for the Center for Ethics and Public Service (CEPS) Summer Public Interest Fellowship Program is Monday, March 2 at 12:30 p.m. Please submit completed applications to Suzanne Nelson in room G288, Law Library. A copy of the application is available on the CEPS website.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

11th ANNUAL INFORMATIONAL CAREER FAIR (all students)
The Informational Career Fair is an excellent opportunity to meet practicing attorneys from law firms, corporations, government agencies and public interest organizations and ask questions about their various practices. Don't miss this chance to network with practitioners. The Informational Career Fair will take place on Wednesday, March 4 from 12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Student Lounge. You need not dress up to attend.

DEADLINE TO APPLY FOR HOPE FELLOWSHIP (1L and 2L students) The HOPE Public Interest Resource Center provides stipends to law students who work in otherwise uncompensated public interest jobs in exchange for a year-commitment to actively serving on the Public Interest Leadership Board. HOPE’s success and growth over the past 10 years is due largely in part to the energy, dedication, and leadership of former and current HOPE Fellows.

HOPE Fellows work with domestic and international public interest agencies & non-governmental organizations to provide much-needed legal advocacy to underserved and marginalized populations. All 1Ls and 2Ls are encouraged to apply.

To learn more about eligibility and program requirements, please view a copy of the fellowship application. You may obtain a copy of the application at the HOPE website or on the CDO Student Portal.

Summer Public Interest Fellowship Opportunities for UM Law Students

Each year, the University of Miami School of Law provides two fellowship programs for students to work for public interest organizations during the summer:

HOPE Fellows (1L and 2L students)

The HOPE Public Interest Resource Center provides stipends to law students who work in otherwise uncompensated public interest jobs in exchange for a year-commitment to actively serving on the Public Interest Leadership Board. HOPE’s success and growth over the past 10 years is due largely in part to the energy, dedication, and leadership of former and current HOPE Fellows.

HOPE Fellows work with domestic and international public interest agencies & non-governmental organizations to provide much-needed legal advocacy to underserved and marginalized populations. All 1Ls and 2Ls are encouraged to apply.

To learn more about eligibility and program requirements, please view a copy of the fellowship application. You may obtain a copy of the application at the HOPE website or on the CDO Student Portal.

Center for Ethics and Public Service Public Interest Law Summer Fellowship Program (1L students)

The University of Miami School of Law is pleased to announce the 2009 Public Interest Law Summer Fellowship Program. This program is open only to current first-year law students. All 1L students who will begin second-year classes at UM in the Fall of 2009 are eligible to apply.

The Public Interest Law Summer Fellowship Program is specifically designed for students who have a sincere, demonstrated interest in public service work and in providing free legal assistance to the poor. The program is an intensive and serious commitment, involving full-time work at a public interest law office, classroom sessions, and a legal research & writing project.

The program will run for approximately nine weeks. The students selected must be available for the entire program, from orientation through the closing session. The students selected will each receive approximately $3,000-$3,500 as a fellowship stipend, in addition to three (3) academic credits, tuition-free. Approximately 17 public interest student fellows will be selected for the program, contingent on the funding received from the Florida Bar Foundation Interest on Trust accounts grant program and other grant sources.

The topic for the summer program is Public Interest Advocacy for indigent clients. The student fellows will experience firsthand how lawyers can make a significant difference in the lives of indigent clients by representing them in domestic violence, mental health, education, disability, immigration and other proceedings.

Students selected for the program will work 40 hours per week in placements arranged by the Program Directors. All legal work handled by the students will be supervised by attorneys at their respective placements. This summer’s placements are expected (but not guaranteed) to include the University of Miami Children & Youth Law Clinic, University of Miami Community Health Clinic, the Public Defender’s Office, the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center, Legal Services of Greater Miami, Legal Aid Services of Broward County, and the Legal Aid Society of the Dade County Bar Association. Student fellows will need to be distributed evenly among the placements. Students selected must agree to accept any placement that they are assigned
by the Program Directors.

To learn more, you should attend the information meeting on Thursday, February 19 at 12:30 p.m. in Room E265. You may obtain a copy of the application on the Center For Ethics and Public Service website or on the CDO Student Portal.

This Week at the CDO

Important events and deadlines for the week of January 19, 2009:

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

SPRING OCI IS HERE!
Bidding for the February Phase of the Spring On Campus Interview (OCI) Program Begins via Symplicity. Bidding will end on Thursday, January 29 at 11:00 p.m.

GET READY FOR OCI
You can't participate in Spring OCI without a resume. Get tips on how to create, edit and update your resume so that it is OCI ready at the Resume Workshop taking place on Tuesday, January 20 at 12:30 p.m. in Room 108.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

YOUR DREAM JOB MIGHT BE JUST AROUND THE CORNER
Join two of South Florida's most prominent and well-respected young attorneys as they discuss the tools and resources they used to obtain the legal job of their dreams. Jeff Cazeau and Josh Spector will present "Finding Your Dream Job in the South Florida Marketplace" on Wednesday, January 21 at 12:30 p.m. in Room 352. Don't miss this valuable opportunity to hear firsthand the ups and downs of two successful career paths.

BIDDING ENDS FOR ARMY JAG (1L and 3L students)
Interested in a summer internship or postgraduate position with the Army Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG)? Now is your chance to interview. Bidding will take place through 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 21st via Symplicity.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

SPRING JUDICIAL INTERNSHIP PROGRAM DEADLINE (2L and 3L students)
The deadline to submit your application to participate in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida Spring Judicial Internship Program is Thursday, January 22 at 5:00 p.m. Applications can be submitted in hard copy to the CDO in Room A-112 or to Nirva Pierre-Louis via email. All students who apply will be assigned to a judge. Information about the program and copies of the application are available on the CDO Student Portal. All students who apply must attend an orientation session on Tuesday, January 27 at 5:30 p.m. in Room 110.

LEARN HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN OCI
First time participating in OCI? Not sure how to use Symplicity for OCI purposes? Then attend the OCI Information and Symplicity Training Session on Thursday, January 22 at 12:30 p.m. in Room 108 and get all the information you'll need to successfully participate in Spring OCI.

DEADLINE TO APPLY FOR THE FLORIDA BAR FOUNDATION FELLOWSHIP
Get paid to do meaningful public interest work this summer by applying to the Florida Bar Foundation Fellowship. The online application and other material can be found on the Foundation's homepage.


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Remember that a complete listing of semester, summer and postgraduate positions is available anytime on Symplicity and that the Spring Calendar is available on the CDO website.

Massachusetts Bar Foundation - Legal Intern Fellowship Program

The Massachusetts Bar Foundation - Legal Intern Fellowship Program offers approximately 6 stipends to law students who intern during the summer months at nonprofit organizations providing civil legal services to low-income clients in Massachusetts. Students must work 10 weeks.

Pay: Stipends have a maximum amount of $6,000. Students may receive funding from other sources to finance the internship.

2009 Deadline: March 13, 2009.

To apply, students must submit a resume, an official law school transcript, one letter of reference, applicant information form, essay (details on applicant information form), and an organization supporting statement form. Applications may be obtained on-line. For the 2009 application, see http://www.massbarfoundation.org/grant-programs/legal-intern-fellowship-program.

A copy of the application form is also available on the CDO Student Portal in the Public Interest and Fellowship folder.

The Peggy Browning Fund Summer Internship

The Peggy Browning Fund Summer Internship

2009 Deadline: January 15, 2009

Pay: minimum $4,500 stipend for 10 weeks

The Peggy Browning Fund will support between 40 and 50 funded Summer Fellowships in labor-related organizations throughout the United States. Participating labor organizations and application materials are available at: http://www.peggybrowningfund.org/apply.html
A cover letter, resume and completed application form must be sent to each eligible work site to which you wish to apply. A copy of each complete application must also be sent to the Peggy Browning Fund. Both the Fund and the specific sites to which students are applying must have received your applications by the deadline. Students can apply for up to 3 positions.
All recipients of summer funding are required to attend a one day (expenses paid) early Fall 2009 wrap-up program/evaluation session.

For additional information, visit http://www.peggybrowningfund.org/.

Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) Foundation Stipends

The FCBA Foundation Now Accepting Applications for Funding of Unpaid Legal Internships at Government Agencies:

For the sixteenth consecutive year, the Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) Foundation will award stipends to law students from its Chairman Robert E. Lee Scholarship and Internship Fund. In 2009, the Foundation will award at least five $5,000 stipends to law students employed as unpaid summer interns in positions with the FCC and other government agencies or entities with a connection to the communications industry (i.e., broadcasting, cable television, telephony, satellite, wireless, and information technology).

In addition, the Foundation will select one outstanding intern among those chosen to receive an additional stipend of $600 for the summer—the “Max Paglin Award.” Mr. Paglin was the former General Counsel and Executive Director of the FCC, and the founder of the Golden Jubilee Commission on Telecommunications, which compiled a definitive legislative history of the Communications Act.

Requirements

Applicants will be selected on the basis of: (1) a demonstrated interest in the communications field, (2) having secured or having pending, an unpaid summer position (internship) for at least 8 weeks in communications with a government agency, (3) dependence on financial assistance in order to accept the unpaid internship in a government agency or entity involved in communications; and, (4) community activities. To the extent a recipient receives unanticipated funding for the unpaid internship, the FCBA Foundation’s general policy is to reduce its scholarship awards by any amount that a recipient’s total funding (including all sources) for the internship would otherwise exceed $7,000.

Applications for a Lee Fund scholarship should be submitted to Kerry Loughney, FCBA Foundation, 1020 19th Street, N.W., Suite 325, Washington, D.C. 20036, by Friday, March 6, 2009. Applicants may be asked to interview with members of the Foundation Board; interviews may be conducted by telephone. Winners will be notified by Friday, April 17, 2009.

A copy of the funding letter and application are available on the CDO Student Portal, in the Federal Government folder.

Summer Opportunity for First and Second Year Students with the Legal Studies Institute

LEGAL STUDIES INSTITUTE

May 24 – August 1, 2009

Washington, DC

The Legal Studies Institute, sponsored by The Fund for American Studies, provides the opportunity for first and second year law students to gain a first-hand look at the American legal system through legal internships, seminars, guest speakers and briefings. The program offers the following five components:

Legal Internship : Participants will be placed in a 9-week legal internship where they will gain substantive experience in the legal profession. Internship sites include law firms, courts, public interest legal organizations, and the legal departments of trade associations, corporations and government agencies.

Seminar on Constitutional Law : Participants will attend a 3-credit seminar on Constitutional law taught by leading legal scholars, including Dr. John Baker from the Louisiana State University School of Law and Dr. Roger Pilon of the Cato Institute.

Briefings and Activities : Participants will attend private briefings at institutions of the judicial and executive branches and will meet with prominent judges, lawyers and judicial scholars.
Career Development Activities : Workshops will be held to help prepare participants for success in their law careers.

Attorney Mentor Program : Each participant will be matched with an experienced lawyer who will serve as a professional mentor during and after the program.

Applications for the program will be reviewed and accepted on a rolling basis until the final deadline of March 20, 2009.

Students completing their applications by the early deadline of January 30, 2009 will receive a 5% discount on their tuition balance as well as priority admissions and scholarship consideration. Housing in furnished apartments located on Capitol Hill is included in the program fee.

Nominated students will receive priority consideration for admission and scholarship funding. Interested candidates should contact their career advisor to receive priority consideration.

For more information and to begin an online application, please visit www.tfas.org/legalstudies.

Institute for Educational Equity and Opportunity Fellowship and Summer Associate Programs

The Institute for Educational Equity and Opportunity is a non-profit organization dedicated to the pursuit of educational equity and opportunity, particularly for disadvantaged United States' public school children through legal means. The IFEEO is especially interested in fair and equitable public school finance laws.

Towards this interest, the IFEEO created the IFEEO Legal Fellowship Program and will provide funding for a 2009 law school graduate to work with attorneys or public interest organizations in the areas of school finance and educational equity. The one-year Fellowship ward will be in the amount of $60,000 for salary with additional fund for benefits..

In addition, the IFEEO established a Summer Associate Award in the amount of $1000 per week for 12 weeks. A second year law student will develop and submit a proposal for a full-time 12 week internship with a public interest organization or an attorney that is involved in litigation to enhance educational opportunities for disadvantaged students, particularly through legal means such as school finance/equity litigation.

To apply for either the Fellowship or Summer Associate Award, please submit a completed application to the address listed on the application form. Completed applications must be postmarked by January 31, 2009. Finalists for each will be notified mid-February, 2009. Interviews will be scheduled mid-February. Final selection will be by February 27, 2009.

ABA John J. Curtin Jr. Justice Fund 2009 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 2009 Program. These students should have a position offered, contingent on funding from a qualified organization.

Internship:

The 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 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.

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.

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 o staff or easily available to supervise the intern.

A lawyer in the program (either volunteer or paid) must supervise the intern and the program must assure the ABA that it will give the intern substantive law experiences with clients and with preparing legal documents.

Application Process:

Applicants must 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.

All application materials must be submitted to the Curtin Internship Program, American Bar Association Commission on Homelessness and Poverty, 740 15th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20005.

All applications must be received by Monday, March 23, 2009.

ABA Fellowship in Environmental Law

The Florida Bar's Environmental and Land Use Law Section is partnering with the American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources to fund the Fellowships in Environmental Law Program in Florida. The program is designed to encourage students from underprivileged and disadvantaged backgrounds to study and pursue careers in environmental and/or land use law. The program is open to first and second year law students.

The program will fund two summer internships at a government agency or public interest organization in Florida with a stipend of $5,000.00 each. The Fellowship guidelines require an 8-10 week internship (40 hours per week) commitment wherein the recipient will work on legal matters for a government agency or a public interest organization in the fields of environment, energy, natural resources and/or land use law. In addition, each recipient will be expected to attend the Annual Update meeting of the ELULS and will be assigned a mentor from the Section to aid in the pursuit of a career in environmental and/or land use law.

More information on how to apply and a copy of the application are available here.

Completed applications and all related documents must be postmarked or emailed no later than January 30, 2009 to be considered.

INFORMATION ON FELLOWSHIPS OUTSIDE OF FLORIDA

Fellowships are available in other states as well. It is generally preferred that students select the state where they are attending law school or have permanent residency status. Exceptions can be made but preference will be giving to those attending school, those who have permanent residency or those who have a strong interest in the state they are applying to.

Fellowships are available in the following states. More information on these fellowships is available here.

California(Deadline: January 15, 2009)
District of Columbia (Deadline: January 31, 2009)
Georgia (Deadline: January 15, 2009)
Hawaii
Louisiana (Deadline: January 15, 2009)
New Mexico (Deadline: February 15, 2009)
New York (Deadline: November 17, 2008)
North Carolina (Deadline: February 16, 2009)
Oregon

Florida Legal Services Summer Fellowship Program

The Florida Bar Foundation is sponsoring the 2009 Summer Fellowship Program at legal aid and legal services programs in Florida.

The 2009 Legal Services Summer Fellowship application and other materials are now available on-line. Please note the application deadline date of January 22, 2009.

It is expected that approximately 40 full-time fellowships will be offered to first and second-year law students. The Legal Services Summer Fellowship Program runs for a period of 11 weeks and is a full-time position for the summer. Fellowship stipends are $5,500 for first-year students and $7,000 for second-year students for the eleven-week period.

Fellowship Purposes

To involve fellowship recipients in the provision of high-quality, significant civil legal assistance to the poor in critical areas of need.

To provide an in-depth educational experience in representing the poor and working with individual clients and client groups in civil matters.

To increase law student interest in and awareness of the legal problems of the poor and the challenges and satisfaction of representing the poor.

To promote commitment to pro bono representation of the poor.

Student Eligibility and Selection Criteria

First and second-year law students attending accredited law schools are eligible to apply as long as they are in good-standing with their law school. Minority students are specifically encouraged to apply. Among the factors to be considered in selections are: experience in working with the low-income community, academic achievement, writing skills, and previous contact with and long-term commitment/interest in public service/pro bono work. Law student applicants will be provided an opportunity to specify program placement preference. Click here to view a list of program placements throughout the state of Florida. Due to the necessity of insuring placement throughout Florida in a variety of programs and sites, student flexibility in preference sites may be a factor in selection.

Fellowship Term

The fellowship commences with a two-day mandatory training and orientation seminar - to be held May 21 and 22, 2009 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida - prior to the fellows arriving for work at the programs. Housing, meals, and reasonable travel expenses for the two-day training will be provided. Fellows are scheduled to report to work at their programs on Monday, May 25, 2009 with the fellowship ending on Friday, August 7, 2009.

Sarasota County Bar Association Internship and Scholarship Deadline Extended

The application deadline for the Sarasota County Bar Association Diversity Scholarship has been extended to December 31, 2008 (from it's previous deadline of December 1). has been extended to 12/31/08. More information and an application is available at the Sarasota County Bar Association website.

The Sarasota County Bar Association Diversity Scholarship Fund is intended to provide an opportunity for first through third year law students of under-represented minority backgrounds (e.g. race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, physical disability, or socioeconomic background), who have an interest in practicing law in Sarasota County upon graduation, to obtain summer placement in private law firms and governmental agencies in the County.

At the conclusion of the student’s summer employment in a law firm or governmental agency, the law school the student attends will receive scholarship funds of at least $5,000.00 per student to be used by the student to continue his or her education.

To read more about this great opportunity, open to all students, please see the previous blog posting.

Reminder: Upcoming Deadline for the Department of State

Reminder: The deadline to apply for their summer 2009 Student Internship Program is November 3, 2008.

A State Department internship is an opportunity for you to get an inside look at the different types of positions and responsibilities available in foreign affairs.

In addition, the Department of State sponsored Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program will offer intensive summer language institutes overseas in eleven critical need foreign languages for summer 2009.

For more information on the Student Intern Program and the Critical Language Scholarship, please see the previous blog posting about these opportunities.

Internship and Scholarship Opportunity for Diverse Law Students Wishing to Practice Law in Sarasota County

The Sarasota County Bar Association Diversity Scholarship Fund is intended to provide an opportunity for first through third year law students of under-represented minority backgrounds (e.g. race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, physical disability, or socioeconomic background), who have an interest in practicing law in Sarasota County upon graduation, to obtain summer placement.

At the conclusion of the student’s summer employment in a law firm or governmental agency, the law school the student attends will receive scholarship funds of at least $5,000.00 per student to be used by the student to continue his or her education. During employment, the student will be assigned an attorney mentor from the Sarasota County Bar Association and will attend a reception to welcome and honor the student and the employer with representatives from the Bar Association and Community Foundation..

Applicants must be attending any accredited law school in the state of Florida and be able to devote at least 30 hours per week to employment in Sarasota County during the summer.

The application deadline is December 1, 2008.

Applications can be downloaded from the Community Foundation of Sarasota County’s website, (see the Special Interest Scholarships page) and also the Sarasota County Bar Association’s website.

Summer LGBT Rights Internship

The QLaw Foundation Public Interest Summer Grant funds innovative public interest projects that benefit the lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (“LGBT”) community and/or people living with HIV/AIDS. The focus of the grant is to address unmet legal needs and to help ensure that the next generation of legal advocates for LGBT rights develops the critical skills necessary to develop careers in the public interest. Previous grant projects include the development of a Washington state-focused GLBT “Know Your Rights” booklet and a research and policy analysis internship with the Northwest Women’s Law Center.

Qualifications

Law students who seek summer internships promoting LGBT rights or the rights of persons living with HIV/AIDS may apply. QLaw gives preference to:

• Students attending Washington state law schools or those seeking internships for the benefit of Washington state residents.
• Students with a demonstrated interest in and commitment to LGBT rights and/or the rights of persons living with HIV/AIDS.

The QLaw Foundation values diversity and encourages all interested students to apply.

Projects and Organizations

Students are encouraged to create their own projects and connect with sponsoring organizations well in advance of the application deadline. The QLaw Foundation will offer applicants a list of sponsoring organizations that have projects addressing issues relevant to LGBT rights or the rights of people with HIV/AIDS. These organizations are existing 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations, or government agencies with staff attorneys who are qualified and available to supervise the student.

Applications will be available on its website in November 2008 and must be submitted by March 20, 2009. You may visit the site now for more information about the application process.