The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, an affiliate of the national ACLU, sponsors applications of third-year law students and attorneys who are seeking funding for public interest fellowships from outside sources such as Equal Justice Works, Skadden and Soros Foundations, and law school-specific fellowships such as the Arthur Liman Fellowship.
Founded in 1919, the ACLU of Massachusetts is one of the nation’s oldest defenders of the civil rights and civil liberties guaranteed by federal and state laws and constitutions. The ACLU of Massachusetts is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with its main legal office in Boston and a second legal office in Northampton. We focus on freedom of speech, student rights, freedom of religion, police misconduct, racial justice, due process, reproductive rights, criminal justice, equality, privacy, and immigrant and prisoner rights. Some of our current areas of interest include inequality in educational opportunity such as racial disparities in school discipline, disparities in policing and prosecutorial decisions, health care reform and reproductive rights, national security issues involving the use of government databases and surveillance of lawful activities, and systemic problems in police departments.
Job Description:
Fellows will work with the ACLU of Massachusetts’ legal director and staff attorneys on all aspects of litigation, including trial and appellate work, as well as non-litigation advocacy across office department lines with other staff. Non-litigation advocacy may include public education, work on legislative matters, public speaking, participating in local community organizing efforts, investigation, and research. The length of the fellowship will be governed by the policy of the funding organization. Application deadlines typically occur in early fall for a fellowship beginning the following fall.
Qualifications:
Applicants should have a commitment to public interest law and civil liberties and civil rights, be self-motivated, and able to work well with a wide range of people. Excellent research and writing skills are necessary. Please email a resume, cover letter indicating specific interests and possible project proposal, a list of references, and a legal writing sample to: info@aclum.org with “2011 Legal Fellowship” in the subject line. Applications may also be mailed to Legal Fellowship, ACLU of Massachusetts, 211 Congress St., Boston, MA 02110. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis as fellowship program deadlines require.
