General Information
Projects for Summer Law
Clerks
For the summer of 2008 LAFLA will employ between 35 and 40 Law Clerks. Applicants must have completed their first year of law school by June 1, 2008. Applications should be received no later than March 1, 2008 in order to receive full consideration.
In 2007, LAFLA hired 35 summer law clerks from the following law schools (listed alphabetically): Boalt Hall, Thomas M. Cooley, Georgetown, Howard, Iowa University, Loyola (Los Angeles), McGeorge, Pepperdine, Southwestern, U.C. Davis, UCLA, USC, and Widener.
In 2006, LAFLA hired 37 summer law clerks from the following law schools (listed alphabetically): Boalt Hall, Boston College, Chapman, Harvard, Hastings, Loyola (Los Angeles), Pepperdine, San Francisco University, Southwestern, U.C. Davis, UCLA, University of Pennsylvania, USC, University of San Diego, and Whittier.
To apply for a position, send a cover letter and resume to Human Resources, ATTN: Summer Law Clerk, LAFLA, 1102 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90019. First-year law Law students are encouraghed to apply; however, they may not submit an application until after December 1st under NALP rules.
Applicants must apply for at least one and no more than three of the projects described below. Please rank the projects in order of your preference in your cover letter. If your cover letter does not list individual projects and why you are interested in applying for them, it is highly unlikely that you will receive an offer from LAFLA. Each unit makes its own offers, and they typically choose from among the many students who have written enthusiastic cover letters demonstrating their interest in the subject area.
Resumes may be either one or two pages in length and should highlight any volunteer work or community experience in addition to relevant work experience. If you list fluency in Spanish or an Asian language and the project requires language ability, we will test you before extending an offer.
All summer Law clerks are expected to apply for PILF grants, work-study, or similar funding. Each law school has different methods of funding summer positions in public interest law, so we are unable to answer questions about how a particular school handles its grants. Funding that involves work-study money may reduce the total amount of loans available for the following two semesters. Discuss this with your Financial Aid office to avoid any surprises. LAFLA is usually able to make a small contribution towards each grant awarded.
Law students who do not receive funding may apply for externship course credit or may volunteer. LAFLA is unable to hire law students during the summer and pay them a full salary. Students must apply or and receive outside funding, generally through their law schools, in order to receive compensation for the summer.
Students generally work for ten weeks, but may work up to twelve weeks. LAFLA has a 35-hour work week. Law clerks are compensated at the rate of $14.00 per hour from the grant awarded by their law school or other funding source. Thus the maximum a student can earn for ten weeks is approximately $4,900. Law clerks who receive grants for less than $4,900 are encouraged to volunteer for the remainder of the ten-week period. Applicants may apply for split summers, but we rarely accept such applications.
LAFLA attends both the Southern California Public Interest Career Day at UCLA Law School and the Northern California Public Interest Career Day at Hastings College of the Law.
Applications are accepted until all positions are filled. Applicants are strongly urged to submit no later than March 1st in order to receive full consideration.
Projects for Summer Law ClerksLaw Clerks work in different substantive areas of the law, but are closely supervised and will, in most instances, do the following:
Summer Law Clerk Opportunities by Unit
Asian Pacific Islander Community Outreach Unit
Consumer Law Unit
Employment Law Unit
Eviction Defense Center
Family Law-Toll Courthouse Pro Per Counseling Center
Government Benefits Unit
Housing Improvement Unit
Immigration Unit
Inglewood Self-Help Legal Access Center
Santa Monica Office
Asian Pacific Islander Community Outreach Unit
The API Unit assists monolingual APIs. Law Clerks work with the other projects at LAFLA to provide appropriate legal services to clients. Law Clerks also conduct community outreach and participate in clinics. Bilingual (Asian language) is required.
The Consumer Law Unit assists clients with problems arising from consumers’ relations with car dealers, hospitals, banks, home solicitors, and vocational schools. The unit litigates and conducts clinics and also provides counsel and advice, brief service, and self-help materials.
Home Equity FraudThe Center is dedicated to advocacy on behalf of low-income homeowners. We work to prevent the loss of the client’s home or the loss of equity in the property by intervening to avoid and/or attack unconscionable loan transactions, forged deeds, fraudulent foreclosures, and unlawful lending practices. We remove unlawful liens against property, confront elder financial abuse, and fight unqualified home-improvement contractors.
Vocational School Fraud ProgramLAFLA provides help to former vocational school students who were defrauded by vocational schools but still must repay one or more loans to the federal government. Law Clerks assist clients in discharging their loans and clearing their credit. Spanish speaking ability is helpful, but not required.
The Employment Law Unit provides direct legal services to Los Angeles’ working poor in the areas of wage and hour law, unemployment insurance, and workplace discrimination. We also do considerable community outreach, which includes two regular weekly workers’ rights clinics. Law Clerks with Spanish, Chinese, or Korean language abilities are especially encouraged to apply.
Law Clerks receive an intensive training on the basics of civil litigation, landlord-tenant law, and client interview and assessment skills. Each student will be assigned to an experienced attorney who will train and supervise him or her throughout the entire summer. Law Clerks will also work with the Center’s Unlawful Detainer Equal Access Project (UDEAP) .
Family Law-Toll Courthouse Pro Per Counseling Center
The Toll Courthouse Center is located in downtown Los Angeles. The Center provides assistance to indigent clients who need family law assistance with emphasis in the areas of custody, visitation, child abduction, child support and domestic violence protective orders. The Center provides general counsel and advice, and brief service and pleading preparation to individuals representing themselves in pro per family actions. Bilingual (Spanish and/or an Asian language) preferred.
Summer Law Clerks will learn about the laws that control the government benefits programs and help to train clients to represent themselves in simple administrative hearings. Law Clerks will also advise clients about their legal rights, negotiate with government agencies, and even represent clients at administrative hearings, all under the close supervision of experienced staff. In addition Law Clerks will assist with welfare reform policy work, including attending meetings to advocate for the rights of clients, drafting informational fliers, and educating clients.
Legal Aid's Housing Improvement Project is dedicated to improving the uninhabitable living conditions of low-income tenants. The project addresses slum abatement through affirmative litigation; outreach and education; and policy work. Bilingual (Spanish) preferred but not required.
Law Clerks may assist clients seeking to become U.S. citizens through naturalization clinics at high schools, senior citizens' and other community centers. Law Clerks also assist undocumented victims of domestic violence in obtaining their lawful permanent resident status under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and assist attorneys in preparing applications for relief in removal proceedings. Law Clerks may also conduct outreach to immigrant population to help survivors of torture obtain legal assistance. Bilingual (Spanish ) required.
Inglewood Self-Help Legal Access Center
The Center is located in the Inglewood Court house and assists litigants in a wide range of civil legal matters pending in state court. Summer clerks will help litigants complete Judicial Council forms and pleadings; explain civil procedure and local rules; and help conduct trainings. Law clerks will have a tremendous amount of interaction with individuals seeking legal assistance and become very familiar with the nuts and bolts of civil practice in California. Bilingual (Spanish) is useful but not required.
The Santa Monica office practices Family Law, Landlord/Tenant, Consumer Law, and Government Benefits. Law Clerks work in the courthouse domestic violence clinic and also assist clients with all aspects of actions for dissolution of marriage (divorce) and actions to establish paternity. The office represents tenants who are fighting evictions, or assists tenants to represent themselves. Law Clerks will also help clients with consumer debt crises, including counseling them on their rights, explaining bankruptcy and alternatives to filing bankruptcy, preparing defenses to wage garnishment, and negotiating with debt collectors. In addition, Law Clerks represent clients who are having problems obtaining government benefits through negotiations with officials or at administrative hearings. Bilingual (Spanish) is preferred.
How To Apply
Please refer back to Job Opportunities.
When the final hiring decision has been made, all applicants will
be notified.
LAFLA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Candidates are chosen solely on merit without discrimination because of age, race, sex, religion, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, mental or physical disability.
© 2008 Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
