
Lawyers care that I care. Fellow students care that I care. Employers care that I care. Caring has helped me overcome the odds, get positions in respected student organizations, legal internships and even an article published by the Huffington Post.
I am a second year law student at the University of Southern California (USC), and a cum laude graduate of the University of California at Riverside. At USC, I am the vice president of the Public Interest Law Foundation, the president of the Legal Aid Alternative Break, a committee member of the Student Bar Association and the Community Service Chair of the Black Law Student Association.
For the past year and a half, I have been offered a position at every organization I wanted and gunned for. These positions include internships at Neighborhood Legal Services, the California Women’s Law Center and the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.
Yet, my grades are not stellar. I went to law school without any prior legal experience. I even made a spelling error once on my resume. But I care, and I got the offers when other people did not.
There are going to be people at your law school who do better than you, both academically and socially. But, you can still get the experiences you want by caring.
Caring means making sure you’re not just talking about the things that interest you—you have to do something about them. If, like me, you’re passionate about public interest law, make sure your resume overflows with volunteer experiences that show you care.
How do you show you care when you haven’t even decided you want to go to law school? Easy. You volunteer. Even if you are interested in going the BigLaw route —you need to volunteer. Here’s why:
It is a well-known fact in the legal world that public interest interns get the most hands on experience of any other type of entry-level legal intern. If you don’t know what “public interest” means, it is a legal organization that aids low-income persons for little to no cost in numerous areas of the law.
Public interest organizations are overrun by clients who need help. So students who volunteer get opportunities to work on real cases with real clients. You will get to write declarations that are seen before a judge, go to court for hearings, and improve your client-interviewing skills. The work you do may even save a life.
There are public interest volunteer opportunities all over the country that focus on numerous areas of the law and have positions for all experience levels. Most organizations receive little funding and have a high volume of clients, so they need our help. And, even though it will be unpaid work, you’re still going to get something big out of it: experience that shows you care.
Employers can train their new associates in how to practice law, but they can’t teach someone to care. Considering things from an employer’s perspective, I would rather hire the person who will stick with their projects and cares about the work than the person who was good at memorizing torts but doesn’t really care about the job.
So, show people your passion. I can tell you from experience it has definitely helped me.
To get you started, here is a list of some organizations where you can volunteer (click on the links for more information):
- Alabama
Alabama Legal Services Programs
- Arkansas
- Arizona
Arizona Center for Disability Law
- California
Bet Tzedek Legal Services (L.A.)
California Center for Law and the Deaf
California Department of Consumer Affairs – Legal Agencies by County
California Indian Legal Services
California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
Central California Legal Services
Greater Bakersfield Legal Assistance, Inc
Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law (L.A.)
Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
Legal Aid Society of San Francisco Employment Law Center
Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County
- Colorado
Colorado Legal Services (Colorado Legal Services)
The Legal Center (Elder and Disability Law)
- Connecticut
Greater Hartford Legal Assistance
Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut
- Delaware
Community Legal Aid Society, Inc.
- District of Columbia
Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia
Whitman – Walker Clinic Legal Department (HIV related legal issues)
- Florida
Bay Area Legal Services (Tampa)
Legal Services of Greater Miami
Legal Services of North Florida
- Georgia
Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Georgia Legal Services Program
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
Cabrini Green Legal Aid Clinic
CARPLS (Cook County)
Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago
- Indiana
Indianapolis Legal Aid Society
Legal Aid Corporation of Tippecanoe County
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
Appalachian Citizens Law Center
- Louisiana
Advocacy Center (Elderly and Disabled)
Legal Services of North Lousiana
New Orleans Legal Assistance Corporation
- Maine
Disability Rights Center of Maine
Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project
Legal Services for the Elderly
- Maryland
Maryland Legal Services Corporation
Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service
- Massachusetts
Center for Public Representation
Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts
Committee for Public Counsel Services
Community Legal Services and Counseling Center
Legal Advocacy and Resource Center
Massachusetts Advocates for Children
Massachusetts Correctional Legal Services
Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
Mental Health Legal Advisors Committee
Merrimack Valley Legal Services
Neighborhood Legal Services (Lynn and Lawrence)
New Center for Legal Advocacy (Bristol and Plymouth County)
South Middlesex Legal Services
- Michigan
Farmworker Legal Services of Michigan
Internet Representation Project (Northern Michigan)
Legal Services of Eastern Michigan
Legal Services of Northern Michigan
Michigan Indian Legal Services
Michigan Legal Assistance Network (for clients)
Michigan Poverty Law Program (for advocates)
- Minnesota
Legal Aid Service of Northeastern Minnesota
Minnesota Legal Services Coalition
Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
- Mississippi
- Missouri
Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Inc.
- Montana
- Nebraska
Nebraska Equal Justice Clearinghouse
- Nevada
Nevada Disability Advocacy and Law Center
Washoe County Senior Law Project
- New Hampshire
Legal Advice and Referral Center
New Hampshire Legal Assistance
- New Jersey
Camden Center for Law and Social Justice
- New Mexico
- New York
Farmworker Legal Services of NewYork
Legal Assistance of Western New York
Legal Services of the Hudson Valley
Legal Services for New York City
Legal Services for the Elderly, Disabled or Disadvantaged (Western NY)
Neighborhood Legal Services (Buffalo)
New York Legal Assistance Group
- North Carolina
Legal Services of Southern PiedmontNorth Carolina Justice and Community
Development Center
North Central Legal Assistance
Program
- North Dakota
Legal Assistance of North Dakota
Legal Services of North Dakota
- Ohio
Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati
Ohio State Legal Services Association / Southeastern Ohio Legal Services
- Oklahoma
Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma
Oklahoma Indian Legal Services
- Oregon
Lane County Legal Services Programs (Eugene)
- Pennsylvania
Center for Disability Law and Policy
Community Legal Services of Philadelphia
Homeless Advocacy Project (Philadelphia)
Legal Aid of Southeastern Pennsylvania
Neighborhood Legal Services Association (Pittsburgh)
Pennsylvania Health Law Project
- Puerto Rico
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands
Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services
West Tennessee Legal Services, Inc.
- Texas
Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse
Legal Hotline for Older Texans
Texas Legal Services Center (State Support)
- Utah
Utah Pro Bono Volunteer Resource Guide
- Vermont
Legal Services Law Line of Vermont
- Virginia
Central Virginia Legal Aid Society
Legal Services of Northern Virginia
Southwest Virginia Legal Aid Society
- Washington
Legal Foundation of Washington
- West Virginia
Legal Help for West Virginians
West Virginia Senior Legal Aid
- Wisconsin
Wisconsin Equal Justice Coalition
– See more at: http://legalaid.uslegal.com/#sthash.IJj1E33s.dpuf
List compiled from http://legalaid.uslegal.com/.