Student Internships

2012 Spring and Summer Internships

GBLS is offering a variety of legal internships for the Spring and Summer term. Due to budgetary constraints, all positions described here are unfunded (unless otherwise noted), so we are presently seeking interns who can obtain full outside funding or will work on a for-credit basis. Many former interns have successfully arranged for their own funding by combining work-study and public interest grants. Students should inquire about public interest funding sources at their law school. Other funding sources are: The Massachusetts Bar Foundation-Legal Intern Fellowship Program and Equal Justice America Fellowships.

Interested students should send a resume and cover letter indicating, in order of preference, the units they are interested in and available hours to: Yahaira Ortiz, 2012 Spring and Summer Internship Program, GBLS, 197 Friend Street, Boston, MA 02114 or via email at jobs@gbls.org.

Asian Outreach Unit  |  Consumer Rights Unit  |  Elder Health Disabililty Unit  |  Employment Unit  |  Family Law Unit  |  Housing Unit  |  Immigration Law Unit  |  Welfare Unit  | Cambridge and Somerville Office  | 

Asian Outreach Unit

Asian Outreach Unit provides legal assistance to hard-to-serve Asian immigrants clients on a wide variety of poverty law matters, including immigration, family, employment, housing, and public benefits cases. In additional to individual cases, AOU represents communities and groups on major legal issues affecting our communities (e.g., voting rights, immigrant workers rights, domestic violence). We seek interns who are bilingual in an Asian language (Cantonese, Khmer, Mandarin, Vietnamese strongly preferred). Student interns assist with intakes, case investigation, brief service and advice, legal research and writing and trial preparation. Work study funding is available.

Read more about the Asian Outreach Unit.  Back to top.

Consumer Rights Unit

GBLS has established a new Consumer Rights Project to focus on foreclosure prevention, predatory lending, debt collection, credit discrimination and other consumer issues. The primary focus of the work in the coming year will be on the foreclosure crisis. The Project's work will include individual representation of homeowner's facing foreclosure; development of impact litigation; legislative and community advocacy; and outreach and education to homeowners in
low-income communities, particularly communities of color. Students will assist in intake, screening cases, reviewing loan documents, doing factual investigations on cases, undertaking legal research and writing assignments, assisting in drafting pleadings and educational materials, and involvement in legislative and community activities.

Read more about the Consumer Rights Unit.  Back to top.

Elder, Health and Disability Unit

Elder: Opportunities for direct client contact and representation, under attorney supervision. Substantive work includes housing (defense of evictions), health and income benefits (appealing terminations of benefits administratively and in court), defense of elderly wards in guardianship proceedings, and nursing home issues. Legal work will be both individual case work, as well as opportunities to participate in systemic impact work through legal and factual
investigation, and client representation.

Health & Disability: Areas of work include: representing individuals who have disability claims pending at the Office of Hearings & Appeals, Social Security Administration, as well as representing clients facing denial or termination of health care coverage by Office of Medicaid; interviewing clients, developing record for administrative hearing and appearing at the hearing; representing individuals and some community groups on access to health care issues;
identifying uninsured individuals facing tax penalties under Health Care Reform and helping them access public health care programs; dealing with administrative agencies such as the Office of Medicaid and the Connector, as well as legal research and writing. Fluency in a foreign language (especially Spanish) is a plus.

Children's Disability Project (CDP): Has been created to expand on the present legal advocacy that the Health & Disability unit now provides to children wrongfully denied Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits by the Social Security Administration (SSA). In addition to representing children on SSI cases, CDP will advise parents on their rights to Special Education for their children. CDP will also create and maintain a Website with case models and practice tips to legal representatives on how to represent children in SSI cases. Legal interns needed for all phases of this work.

Medicare Advocacy Project: Work on behalf of elders and people with disabilities to help them navigate most significant changes in Medicare since 1965; develop consumer education materials; factual and legal research and writing; client interviews, some advice and representation; address coverage and enrollment issues.

Read more about the Elder, Health and Disability Unit.  Back to top.

Employment Law Unit

We are seeking law students to do client intakes, represent clients in unemployment hearings, wage and hour claims, claims for family leave, tax controversies and other work-related problems. The Unit prioritizes representation to single heads of households, immigrant workers and workers in day labor jobs. In addition to individual case work, student assistance is also needed with community legal education, on-going administrative and legislative advocacy as
well as pending law suits. Fluency in Spanish, Cantonese, Portuguese, Haitian Creole and Vietnamese or other languages is particularly valued as is the completion of courses on evidence, administrative advocacy, and employment law, but none of these prerequisites are required. A minimum of 20 hours a week is preferred for those students wishing to represent clients in hearings. Work study funding is available during the year with the exception of the summer as grants are available then (including the Peggy Browning Fellowship). Funding ($15/hour) is also available for the tax work, which involves representing taxpayers before the IRS in controversies with an emphasis on taxpayers who do not speak English, so the ability to speak Spanish or other languages strongly preferred.

Read more about the Employment Unit.  Back to top.

Family Law Unit

The Family Law Unit represents victims of domestic violence who have contested custody and visitation matters in Probate and Family Court in an effort to secure safety for families and economic stability for custodial parents seeking to leave their abusers. Students in the Family Law unit will, depending on experience, handle a case load under the supervision of an attorney which includes: conducting intake interviews, gathering evidence, preparing pleadings and
discovery, legal research, preparing hearing memoranda and representing clients in Motion hearings (if SJC Rule 3:03 certified). Students without certification will be able to participate in cases up to the hearing stage and will assist attorneys with trial preparation and other related tasks on attorney cases. In addition to individual casework, opportunities exist to work in one of our other specialized projects. Students may staff one of our two court-based Domestic Violence Advocacy Projects working on-site at the Suffolk and Middlesex Probate and Family Courts providing a range of legal services to individuals seeking abuse prevention orders. The full panoply of legal skills are well utilized and in-court, on your feet oral advocacy is possible. The unit’s Relocation Counseling Project offers students the opportunity to enjoy a varied experience working with victims of crime who are seeking to relocate away from the perpetrator. Issues include internet stalking, privacy protection, identity change and other issues of import to these clients. Our hospital and health center collaborations provide a community-based experience where legal advocates and social services workers team to provide holistic services to victims of domestic violence who come through the community agencies. Finally, our unique Latina Know Your Rights project, housed in Waltham, offers an opportunity to provide not only family law advocacy but immigration, public benefits and housing advocacy.

Read more about the Family Law Unit.  Back to top.

Housing Law Unit

The mission of the Housing Unit is to preserve tenancies and increase affordable housing for low income clients. We represent individuals who are being involuntarily displaced from their units and those who seek access to affordable units, as well as community groups who promote the expansion of resources for affordable housing and try to minimize the loss of currently affordable units. We also represent homeless families who seek temporary shelter. Students are needed for individual case representation and legal research on litigation and legislative matters, as well as our community group work.

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Immigration Law Unit

The Immigration Unit provides representation to individuals before Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Immigration Court, the Board of Immigration Appeals and the First Circuit. We provide representation in a wide-range of immigration matters, but focus on individuals seeking asylum or protection from domestic abuse and unaccompanied minors. Our law students work closely with clients to prepare applications for asylum, self petitions under the Violence Against Women Act and U visa applications; conduct legal research and research into country conditions; and assist staff in the walk-in intake clinic. Great opportunity to work oneon-one with clients. Language ability (especially Spanish, French and Haitian Creole) and immigration experience or course work preferred but not required.

Read more about the Immigration Unit.  Back to top.

Welfare Law Unit

Welfare/Child Care/Education and Training: Intern openings for self-starting law students to work on projects and/or handle cases. Direct client representation is needed for families who need to obtain subsistence-level benefits or whose benefits are at risk. Special protections for survivors of domestic violence, disabled recipients, and families with disabled children are available under the law but poorly implemented, so legal representation is constantly needed.
Students also may provide direct representation regarding child care benefits and access to education and training, and to clients to facing termination of utility service. Fluency in Spanish is a big plus. In addition, the Welfare Law Unit is litigating a federal class action lawsuit under the Americans with Disabilities Act and has an ongoing need for legal research and other support related to the lawsuit. Students wishing to directly handle cases must be able to commit at least 20 hours per week during the school year and full time during the summer, but client contact and other assistance with direct representation may be available with fewer hours.

Read more about the Welfare Unit.   Back to top.

Cambridge and Somerville Office

We are seeking law students to work at the Cambridge & Somerville Legal Services’ office (CASLS) of GBLS. Students are given opportunities to have direct case handling and client contact responsibilities, combined with legal research and other assignments on systemic reform projects. The casework focuses on housing, government benefits, elder and mental health issues.

Read more about Cambridge and Somervile Legal Services.  Back to top.

Please feel free to contact Yahaira Ortiz at (617) 603-1805 or via email at jobs@gbls.org for any questions you may have on these internships. Also, feel free to visit our website at www.gbls.org.

GBLS is an AA/EO/Handicapped-accessible employer, committed to promoting diversity in its workforce and regards differences as assets.