Founded in 1876, The Legal Aid Society is the nation's oldest and largest provider of free legal services for low-income families and individuals, and one of the largest legal employers of any kind in the New York Metropolitan area. Legal Aid's staff of lawyers, paralegals, investigators, social workers and support personnel provide comprehensive legal services in New York City's five boroughs in more than 275,000 cases annually. The Society's major areas of legal practice are the Civil Practice, which handles housing, income support, immigration, family law and general civil matters; the Criminal Practice, which serves as the City's principal public defender for criminal prosecutions at the trial and appellate levels, and also in parole revocation proceedings; and the Juvenile Rights Practice, in which attorneys serve as law guardians for children in child protective and delinquency proceedings in family court.
In addition to its representation of individual clients, the Society includes specialized units which provide backup assistance to staff and bring affirmative-litigation on behalf of the Society's clients to secure legal reforms in the City and throughout the State. The law reform units include the Prisoners Rights Project, the Homeless Rights Project, the Immigration Unit, the Health Law Unit, the Special Litigation Units, and the Civil Practice's Appeals and Law Reform Units. While all of the specialized units have internships available for law students, they do not have entry level positions open to law graduates.
Internships
Internships and externships are available for law students in our Civil, Criminal and Juvenile Rights Practice Areas. We also have internships for undergraduate students in our Criminal and Civil Practice Areas. Positions are available part time in the spring and fall semesters and full time in the summer. All internships are unpaid volunteer positions. We are always happy to cooperate with students and their schools to secure class credits or funding from outside sources.
Please take note of the following application deadlines:
- Summer: October 15 - March 15
- Fall: July 15 - September 15
- Spring: October 15 - January 15
Applications submitted after the deadline for that semester may not be considered.
Application Process
Legal Aid is looking for applicants with a demonstrated commitment to providing high quality legal services for low-income families and individuals. We believe that quality representation also includes a staff that reflects the diversity of the clients we serve. Annually, The Legal Aid Society receives hundreds of applications for a limited number of positions. Application by email is required and will be responded to promptly. In the body of your email, please indicate the Practice Area(s) in which you are most interested.
To Apply
- Law Students: Email a letter of interest and attach a resume, writing sample and school transcript to: Khadija Mohamed, Recruitment Manager at internships@legal-aid.org.
- Undergraduates: Email a letter of interest and attach a resume to: Khadija Mohamed, Recruitment Manager at internships@legal-aid.org.
The Legal Aid Society is an equal opportunity employer. Women, people of color, gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender people, people with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply.