2027 Summer Intern - Opportunity Under Law Project

Description

OPPORTUNITY UNDER LAW PROJECT

To apply for a summer internship with OUL, you must be in your first or second year of law school. Please submit a cover letter, resume, and a writing sample, all in PDF form (and a transcript, if available). Your resume must reflect the law school you are currently enrolled in, to be considered for any summer program internship at Public Counsel.

In your cover letter, identify which team(s) described below you would like to work with. Discuss why you are interested in interning with Public Counsel generally and with OUL specifically. Note that we are especially interested in receiving applications from historically underrepresented students consistent with our active, ongoing commitment to increasing equity and inclusion, and that we value lived experiences and experiences working with clients across a range of settings. Please consider addressing these topics in your cover letter, especially if not reflected in your resume.

If you would like to be considered for a summer internship with another project at Public Counsel, please submit a separate application to that project. Note, however, you can only be hired to work with one project during the summer program. 

We strongly encourage you to submit your application no later than February 1.

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Opportunity Under Law (OUL) was formed in 2014 to expand Public Counsel’s longstanding economic justice and impact litigation practice.  OUL brings community-based impact litigation to eliminate barriers to opportunity. We represent individuals and communities confronting structural injustice and discrimination in areas like education, housing, and immigration. Many of our cases arise from Public Counsel’s representation of individual clients who face persistent injustices. By working closely with the organization’s direct services programs and across its subject areas, OUL is uniquely positioned to bring meaningful impact cases in California and beyond, work closely with affected communities, and communicate broadly to advance public discourse. Our cases strategically pursue novel claims to address intersectional issues and secure landmark victories in doctrinal areas commonly regarded as off limits for civil rights advocacy.

OUL works with student interns to match areas of interest with our active litigation. OUL provides law clerks with the opportunity to work on litigation at different stages, including the development of a case, discovery, settlement, and trial work. All clerks will have legal research and writing opportunities that involve identifying issues and developing and articulating legal theories. Clerks will also participate in legal strategy discussions. As relevant to their assignments, clerks may also gather facts, interview clients, participate in mediation and assist with trial preparation activities. Clerks will receive one-on-one mentoring opportunities with our team of attorneys, and OUL will work with clerks to identify a writing sample project, based on interest. OUL uses a law firm model of supervision, meaning clerks will balance multiple cases while working with different attorneys. This will provide clerks with the chance to practice valuable time management skills. Some of OUL’s recent litigation is described below followed by examples of student activities related to each focus area:

CHILD WELFARE

Ocean S. v. LA County is a lawsuit filed in August 2023 against the State of California and LA County on behalf of young people in foster care. The suit challenges the governments’ systemic failure to provide safe, stable housing and necessary support services for transition age foster youth currently in the foster care system, including by ensuring that all young people in foster care have legally compliant case and transition planning tailored to meet their individual needs.

What do student interns do in child welfare? 

Students who work on child welfare cases have written briefs, researched and identified expert witnesses, written team memos on the impact of trauma on foster youth outcomes, researched disability law, monitored settlements for compliance, assisted with discovery review, attended hearings, and more. Previous summer clerks had the opportunity to draft portions of an amicus brief in the Supreme Court case Brackeen v. Haaland, highlighting the importance of preserving the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), which protects the rights of Native American youth in foster care. Other notable assignments include working with organizational partners to draft letters of guidance to courts and Judicial Counsel to ensure proper application of new law during probate court proceedings, and assisting plaintiffs with enrollment in educational and vocational programs using compensatory education funds. 

IMMIGRANT RIGHTS

L.T. v. U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement is an ongoing class action lawsuit filed on behalf of four detainees at Adelanto ICE Processing Center. The suit, filed in 2025, seeks to end the unlawful and dangerous conditions at Adelanto and to secure enforceable protections, including meaningful oversight. 

What do student interns do in immigrant rights?

Students who work on immigrant rights have written briefings, conducted legal research, drafted expert declarations, followed policy and local politics news, participated in oral argument moot court, engaged with coalition partners, and more. Previous summer clerks conducted legal research to support habeas petitions and responsive briefings in Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice v. City of Fontana, an ongoing litigation challenging the City of Fontana’s unlawful street vending rules, and drafting an amicus brief in Sequeira v. Department of Homeland Security, a class action lawsuit in the Northern District of California challenging the practice of sharing immigrant data from remittances with dozens of state and federal authorities, including ICE. 

HOUSING RIGHTS 

Powers v. McDonough is an ongoing lawsuit, currently on appeal, challenging the federal government’s failure to provide housing and healthcare to Los Angeles veterans with disabilities. As a direct result of the government’s inaction, nearly 3,500 veterans are homeless in Los Angeles in any given night. The lawsuit seeks to (1) require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to fulfill its commitments to provide appropriate Permanent Supportive Housing to disabled veterans and (2) prohibit the VA from entering or continuing unlawful land use agreements.

What do student interns do in housing rights? 

Students who work on OUL’s housing rights litigation have conducted legal research, written briefs, assisted with discovery review, exhibit preparation for depositions and trial testimony, attended federal trial dates, and more. Previous summer clerks observed in-person depositions and reviewed transcripts to create testimony outlines that were critical for trial preparation in Powers. Other notable assignments include working on legal research and drafting key memoranda on novel legal claims in order to advance and protect housing rights.

EDUCATION EQUITY

Mae M. v. Komrosky is an ongoing lawsuit challenging the Temecula Valley Unified School District’s censorship of concepts that conflict with their ideological viewpoints, including the history of the LGBTQ rights movement and the existence of systemic racism. The suit, filed in August 2023, is a first-of-its-kind case that seeks to invalidate the Board’s curriculum censorship and affirm students’ right to comprehensive, fact-based education in California’s public schools.

What do student interns do in education equity? 

Students who work on education equity have written briefings, drafted expert declarations, organized and hosted plaintiff meetings, researched anti-“CRT” policies throughout the country, followed policy and local politics news, reviewed compliance with education settlements, submitted and reviewed FOIA requests, and participated in oral argument moot court, and more. Previous summer clerks conducted extensive fact research and drafted expert declarations for a preliminary injunction in Cayla J. v. State of California, a case challenging the disproportionate learning loss among low-income students of color. Other notable assignments include legal research and drafting a successful appellate brief in the IntegrateNYC v. State of New York, a case challenging New York City’s two-tiered public school system that disproportionately screens out low-income students of color and seeks to establish a state right to an antiracist education. 

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Public Counsel is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice, as well as to amplifying the power of our clients through comprehensive legal advocacy. Founded on and strengthened by a pro bono legal service model, our staff and volunteers seek justice through direct legal services, promote healthy and resilient communities through education and outreach, and support community-led efforts to transform unjust systems through litigation and policy advocacy in and beyond Los Angeles.