Transcript How to Pursue A Career in Public Interest Law

Pursuing a Career
in Public Interest Law
Kelly O’Brien, Public Interest Clearinghouse
415/834-0100, ext. 311, [email protected]
Diane T. Chin, Director, Equal Justice Works/West
510/207-8102, [email protected]
A few administrative reminders…

Please mute your phone. Press *6. To un-mute,
press *7.

We encourage you to submit questions during
this presentation via the chat button. Please
email any and all questions to Chris Moulton
(Host).
Why pursue a career in public interest
law?
In California, less than
75% of the essential
legal needs of the poor
go unmet each year.
There are a total of
820 attorneys working
at IOLTA field
programs in
California.
Yet, the number of
attorneys and amount
of money available to
help underrepresented
people secure justice is
shrinking.
A public interest career also…



provides that rare opportunity to work with
communities and clients as well as on social or
political issues that are consistent with your
values
allows you to engage fully in the social justice
movement
creates opportunities for new voices to be heard
within the justice system
Finding a job in law school and
beyond…

Explore your interests and show you are serious
about a public interest career through clinics,
externships or field placements, volunteer work,
and course work. In the public interest world,
demonstrated commitment counts
— a lot.

Research all opportunities—and apply!
When do you start your career?
Now.
Find a Pro Bono opportunity in California!
PIC has several websites to assist you in your search:
•www.probono.net/ca/
•www.CALegalAdvocates.org
•www.LawHelpCalifornia.org
Locate resources to support your summer jobs, including law
school or law foundation funding, Equal Justice Works’
SummerCorps, and local or state bar scholarships.
The Benefits of Doing Volunteer
Legal Work During Law School

Help provide vitally needed services and feel good
about being in law school.

Prove your commitment to doing public interest
work to potential employers.

Gain invaluable opportunities to learn practical
legal skills under the direction of dynamic and
skilled attorneys.

Develop professional contacts and mentors.
How do you get a post-law school
public interest job?
Apply!
“There is no comparison between that
which is lost by not succeeding and that
lost by not trying.” –Francis Bacon, Sr.
Do a Comprehensive Search
Non-Profits Legal Organizations: Most “public interest law” is
provided through non-profit organizations. Each of these sites has ideas of
ways you can apply for jobs in non-profit organizations. Many legal
services organizations will also host you as fellow after graduation.











Idealist.org www.idealist.org
PSLawNet: NALP’s public service network worldwide www.pslawnet.org
Equal Justice Workswww.equaljusticeworks.org
Craigslist www.craigslist.org (search by city/state)
The Public Interest Law Initiative www.pili.org
The American Bar Association www.abanet.org
Opportunitynocs.org www.opportunitynocs.org
California Legal Advocates www.calegaladvocates.org/employment.cfm
National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA) Job Opportunities:
http://www.nlada.org/Jobs
Law Help California www.lawhelpcalifornia.org
And more! Utilize your career services office!
A few post-graduate fellowships programs to
consider applying for…
Equal Justice Works
Equal Justice Works sponsors two types of post-graduate fellowships, which
include the Equal Justice Works Fellowships Program, and the AmeriCorps
Legal Fellows Program.
Skadden Fellowship Program - Fellows create their own projects at public interest
organizations with at least two lawyers on staff.
Echoing Green - In the past, Echoing Green solely provided seed funding to start
your own nonprofit, and has relaxed criteria some in recent years.
New Voices -New Voices Fellowship is currently focusing on Katrina-related projects
but has funded legal services more broadly in the past. [Kelly – does this remain
accurate?]
Soros Foundation - A number of organizational and individual grants and fellowships,
including the US Impact Fund’s Soros Justice Fellowship are available for public interest
legal work through the Soros Foundation.
Some of the Benefits of Post-Graduate
Fellowships



It can be difficult to obtain an entry-level position at a civil
legal services organization, but a fellowship creates this
opportunity
Many fellowship programs in addition to supporting your
salary offer loan repayment assistance, specialized training,
and access to conferences
You are immediately part of a defined public interest
community that will provide a network for you as you
move forward in our career
Preparing to apply for postgraduate fellowships
Develop a timeline to help guide you
First Year, Second Semester
 Begin to identify practice areas or client groups of interest.
 Get to know faculty, students, and administrators with experience in areas of
interest.
 Select courses, activities and summer job placements to build experience and
develop contacts.
 Attend postgraduate fellowship orientation (Spring term).
 Review information about fellowships on line and in your law school’s Career
Services Office library. Schedule a meeting with public interest staff.
First Year Summer
 Develop legal skills, insight into issues, remedies and resolution strategies.
 Research and get to know key people and organizations engaged in the work
that interests you. Schedule informational interviews to learn more about
substantive areas of law and to evaluate organizations.
 Talk to fellows who are working at the organization where you are interning
about their experience.
Second Year (and **Third Year for those who will be judicial clerks directly
after graduation)
 Select a clinic and/or externship to build experience and contacts in areas of
interest.
 Select a summer job placement to concentrate on areas of interest.
 **Develop an application schedule.
 **Research potential sponsor organizations and obtain information about their
selection processes and deadlines.
 **Research potential postgraduate fellowships. Review their requirements and
procedures.
 Consult with public interest faculty members, administrators and alumni about
the fellowship process.
Second Year Summer (or Summer before Judicial Clerkship begins)
 Develop advanced skills, network with individuals in your field of interest.
 Submit applications to potential organizational sponsors for project-based
fellowships (e.g., Equal Justice Works, Skadden).
 Identify project ideas for fellowship applications, if applicable.
 Request letters of recommendation, transcripts, and other required background
materials.
Third Year
 Consult regularly with public interest faculty and administrators to develop
applications.
 Develop and refine fellowship proposals, working with organizations and public
interest staff. Edit, revise, consult, edit, revise, consult.
 Apply for postgraduate fellowships.
 Conduct practice interviews.
Myths you may have heard and should
ignore



You won’t be eligible for a fellowship if you’ve
worked at a law firm
You won’t be competitive for a fellowship if you’re
not in the top of your class
A fellowship is a good back up option if you don’t
get a judicial clerkship
Public Interest Law Firms:
Public interest law firms are generally small to medium sized and
focus on individual plaintiffs or class actions, policy or impact
litigation in specific areas of practice, such as discrimination, labor
or immigration.

The National Association of Law Placement
(NALP) Directory of Legal Employers:
www.nalpdirectory.com

Harvard Law School’s guide to public interest law
firms:
www.law.harvard.edu/students/opia/docs/guideprivate-pi-firms.pdf
Government: Many government positions require a JD or consider
having a JD a value to the position. These links will aid you in exploring
career options in the government and provides the link to preparing an
application for the federal government honors program.

California Attorney General’s office has postings for California state
government job openings: http://ag.ca.gov/careers/index.htm

USAJobs is the webpage for all federal government job openings:
www.usajobs.com

Federal government honors program, read and explore this guide which
explains the process and lists all agencies and offices that have honors
program openings along with their deadlines.
http://www.law.arizona.edu/career/honorshandbook.cfm

Statewide District Attorney’s offices and Public Defenders offices are
available by searching on the web for your local county office.
Know What to Expect
National Public Interest Salaries*
• The median entry-level salary for an attorney from the class of 2005 at a
civil legal services organization was $36,000.
• The median entry-level salary for public defenders was about $43,000.
• State and local prosecuting attorneys started around $44,000.
• The median entry-level salary was $40,000 for attorneys in public interest
organizations, such as those dealing with immigrant or civil rights issues.
*This data is available in the Equal Justice Works Report, Financing the Future
(2006). http://www.equaljusticeworks.org/files/financing-the-future2006.pdf
What does it mean to earn $38k
per year?
Public School Graduate
Private School Graduate
$38,000
$38,000
Estimated Monthly Take Home Pay
$2,111
$2,111
Estimated Monthly Loan Payment*
-$630
-$1,013
Monthly Available Income for Housing,
Food, Transportation, Savings
and Other Expenses
$1481
$1098
Starting Salary
*This figure may be reduced by your law school’s LRAP program or the new
federal law (College Cost Reduction and Access Act). For more information,
contact your law school staff and go to www.equaljusticeworks.org.
You CAN make it work,
financially…

Spend your borrowed money wisely to reduce debt repaid later.
Ex. stop purchasing coffee. $780 worth of coffee (approx. five $3
cups/week for THREE years) costs $31/month for TEN years to repay…Read,
“Lower Your Law School Debt,” Jeffery E. Hanson, Student Lawyer Magazine,
V. 35, No. 2 (Oct. 2006).

Create a budget, stick to it, & incorporate free fun into your life.

Get creative with your funding sources!
 Develop grant writing skills
 Seek out loan assistance repayment programs including the new
federal student debt relief legislation - College Cost Reduction and
Access Act (CCRAA), as well as employer and law school-based
(LRAPs)
 Do contract work on the side.
You CAN fulfill your dreams. . .
Most law students in their law school applications
say that a primary reason they want to go to law
school is to make the world a better place.
Your law degree will open doors for you to achieve
just this goal.
Remember the reasons you decided to go to law
school, think about your vision for a more just and
equal society, then pursue those dreams!