ANNOUNCEMENTS
Equal Justice Works Fellowships
The Equal Justice Works Fellowship Program creates partnerships among public interest lawyers, nonprofit organizations, law firm/corporate sponsors and other donors in order to afford underrepresented populations effective access to the justice system.
Fellowship Timeline
| July 7, 2009 | The 2010 application will be available online |
| Sept. 17, 2009 | The application and supporting paperwork are due to Equal Justice Works by 5 p.m. EDT |
| Nov. 2009 | Interviews begin for selected candidates |
| Dec. 2009 and Jan. 2010 |
Interviews continue; Fellowships are offered on a rolling basis |
| Sept. 2010 | Class of 2010 Fellows begin service |
About Equal Justice Works Fellowships
The Equal Justice Works (formerly NAPIL) Fellowships Program was launched in 1992 to address the shortage of attorneys working on behalf of traditionally under-served populations and causes in the United States and its territories. Recognizing that many obstacles prevent committed attorneys from practicing public interest law, including the dearth of entry-level jobs and daunting educational debts, the program provides financial and technical support to lawyers working on innovative and effective legal projects. The two-year Fellowships offer salary and generous loan repayment assistance; a national training and leadership development program; and other forms of support during the term of the Fellowship.
In 1997, with the support of a substantial matching grant from the Open Society Institute (OSI), the foundation created by financier and philanthropist George Soros, the Fellowships Program was expanded to encourage partnerships between law firms, corporations and public interest organizations to fund Fellowships. As a result, in 1998, the Fellowships Program, then called NAPIL Equal Justice Fellowships, became the nation’s largest postgraduate legal fellowship program by supporting 86 fellows working on domestic violence, homelessness, community economic development, immigration, civil rights, juvenile justice, employment rights, access to health care, consumer fraud, environmental justice and other critical issues. Equal Justice Works is currently supporting 108 Fellows in the field: 54 Fellows who began in September 2007 and 54 new Fellows who began last fall.
Equal Justice Works is committed to recruiting attorneys who represent a variety of experiences and backgrounds and to providing them with a strong foundation on which to build a public interest career. Equal Justice Works Fellowships seek to develop the public interest law leaders of the future, whether they continue to work in the nonprofit arena or become pro bono advocates in the private bar.
QUESTIONS?
Join the discussion at the Equal Justice Works forum.
IMPORTANT DATES
2010 Fellowship Application Available Online
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
IN THE NEWS
Conflicting Accounts of an ICE Raid in Md.
By N.C. Aizenman, Washington Post – February 18
The Jan. 23, 2007, raid at 7-Eleven, described in ICE documents and shown in security camera footage obtained by The Washington Post, offers a glimpse into how Washington's directives on arrest targets might have spurred officers in the field to stray from their mission and stage a random sweep for illegal immigrants, possibly in violation of ICE's stated practice. Equal Justice Works Fellow Michelle Mendez, co-counsel at CASA of Maryland, said the events call into question whether the officers overstepped their authority. Although law enforcement officers can question anyone who speaks to them voluntarily, Mendez said, they cannot legally detain someone without reasonable suspicion.