Legal Setting: Public Interest/Public Policy

WEB RESOURCES

General Information and Directories

• PSJD's Career Center also includes information about public interest careers and resources to help you research public interest employment, including:
  • Legal Services Guide
  • Conservative/Libertarian Public Interest Law
  • Finding and Funding International Public Interest Opportunities
  • Finding Employment Opportunities with International Governmental Organizations (IGOs) and the United Nations
  • Immigration & Refugee Law
  • Children's Rights Law
  • Women's Rights Law
  • Environmental Law
  • NYU Public Defender Guide
  • UVA Public Defender Guide
• Think Tank Directory links to various "think tank" advocacy organizations.
• Human Rights Council —links to human rights organizations in Virginia
• Selected Parent Representation Offices  list of offices that represent parents in family court.
• Worker's Rights Career Resources
• The American Hospital Directory allows you to search for hospitals by location. The profile links to the hospital’s website and gives information about the number of beds and what type of care it provides. 
• Duke has a database of non-governmental organizations, organized by issue or geography.
• Harvard’s Guide has a list of NGOs, organized by issue
• Charity Village: collects relevant websites and resources for NGOs.
• Eldis-- aim is to share the best in development policy, practice and research. Includes resources and job opportunities with organizations around the world.
• Law Firms Sponsoring Public Interest Summers and Summer Fellowships
• Private Public Interest and Plaintiff's Law Firms. List of firms focusing on plaintiff work.

Internship Postings

• Internships USA (requires password) has the following public interest internship books:
  • Legal Aid Offices
  • Human Rights Internships
  • Big Green Internship Book
  • Women's Rights
  • Washington Internships in Law and Policy
  • Internships in International Affairs
• PSJD is a nation-wide database that allows you to search for available positions by practice and geographic areas of interest by subscription only. W&L Law students may register; registration is free.
• The Public Policy Handbook (requires password) provides links to more than 200 internships and post-graduate fellowships with nongovernmental organizations, think tanks, advocacy organizations, and other institutions engaged in policy analysis and implementation.
• Idealist.org lists opportunities for summer and full-time employment in the public interest.
• Capital Defense Internships: Berkeley Law maintains a list of internships with death penalty advocacy groups across the country.
• Law Students for Reproductive Justice posts internship and fellowship opportunities.
• American Society of International Law posts international internships organized by issue (criminal law, economic and trade, private trade, etc.) and has links to various organizations.
• Shepherd Alliance Program —paid summer public interest opportunities.
• Peggy Browning Fund lists full-time and internship opportunities in labor law.
• OneWorld posts permanent and internship positions.
• American Bar Association Center for Pro Bono and Public Service -- includes positions in pro bono and public interest organizations, civil legal services providers, public interest positions within law firms, and other similar organizations. Employers may post permanent, full-time positions as well as internships, summer clerkships, part-time positions, and short-term projects.
• The National Pro Bono Opportunites Guide is available for you to search for volunteer opportunities by state

Full-Time Position Postings

• PSJD is a nation-wide database that allows you to search for available positions by practice and geographic areas of interest by subscription only. W&L Law students may register; registration is free.
• The Public Policy Handbook (requires password) provides links to more than 200 post-graduate fellowships with nongovernmental organizations, think tanks, advocacy organizations, and other institutions engaged in policy analysis and implementation.
• Idealist.org lists opportunities for full-time employment in the public interest.
• Law Students for Reproductive Justice posts fellowship opportunities.
• Politico posts various policy positions
• Peggy Browning Fund lists full-time opportunities in labor law.
• Fellowship Information: Post-graduate fellowships are one to two year entry level positions for recent graduates to gain experience with legal issues of interest to them. Fellowships are a stepping stone for a career in a particular practice area. Indeed, some public interest organizations may hire entry-level attorneys exclusively through fellowships.
• The Council on Foundations  job opportunities within foundations throughout the U.S.
• Intercollegiate Job Bank (requires password) includes job listings gathered from various law schools' Symplicity system. Some public interest postings will be included.
• Nonprofit Careers
• Opportunity Knocks
• The Association for Women’s Rights in Development posts job opportunities in the field.
• OneWorld
• American Bar Association Center for Pro Bono and Public Service -- includes positions in pro bono and public interest organizations, civil legal services providers, public interest positions within law firms, and other similar organizations. Employers may post permanent, full-time positions as well as internships, summer clerkships, part-time positions, and short-term projects.
• National Legal Aid and Defender Association Job Board (Nationwide Listings)
• Virginia Indigent Defense Commission-- Posts public defender positions in Virginia.
• National Association of College and University Attorneys posts positions, largely in compliance and risk management, but also in university counsel positions

OCP LIBRARY RESOURCES

Note: If you have trouble finding a resource in OCP's library ask us to help you find it; it could be checked out.

• Careers in International Affairs, Maria Pinto Carland & Lisa Gihring, editors (7th ed.)
  • Includes discussion of international opportunities in international organizations, nonprofits, and international development.
• Complete Fellowship Guide, Pslawnet (2010-2011)
  • Print version of pslawnet's online guide.
• Great Firm Escape (The),Stacy Debroff, et al.
• Guide to Internships and Fellowships in Reproductive Justice, Law Students for Reproductive Justice
• Internships USA Series, Career Education Institute
• OCP has print versions of many of the Internship series available on the web:
  • Legal Aid Offices
  • Human Rights Internships
  • Big Green Internship Book
  • Women's Rights
  • Washington Internships in Law and Policy
  • Internships in International Affairs
• Lawful Pursuit: Careers in Public Interest Law, Ronald Fox (1998)
• National Legal Aid and Defender Association: Directory of Legal Aid & Defender Offices(2009-2010):
  • Directory of state public defender offices and legal aid offices across the country
• Public Sector/ Public Interest Attorney Salary Report, NALP (2010)
• Serving the Public: A Job Search Guide, in two volumes: USA and International
  • Comprehensive guide to public interest law. In addition to listings of employers, fellowships, and funding sources, it provides information on practice settings, networking tips, job search and resume writing strategies, salary trends, and narratives by Harvard Law School alums in public interest work.
• Yellow Book Leadership Directoriesinclude the name and contact information of the leadership of various organizations. Note: if the copy in OCP's library is outdated, check the Law Library as they usually have the most up-to-date copy.
  • Nonprofit Yellow Book (Summer 2001)
  • Governmental Affairs Yellow Book (Summer 2001)