For 100 years, the ACLU has been our nation’s guardian of liberty, working in courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBT community, advancing racial justice, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil liberties and civil rights cases and issues to defend all people from government abuse and overreach.
In Delaware and nationwide, affiliates and the National ACLU fight tirelessly for the principle that every individual’s rights must be protected equally under the law, regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, national origin, and record of arrest or conviction.
Overview
The ACLU of Delaware’s legal department is responsible for leading the organization’s advocacy in the courts, as well as supporting our policy, legislative, and communications work. As a key component of our integrated advocacy, our legal department is on the cutting edge of defending and expanding civil liberties in Delaware.
The Law Clerk will be supervised by the Staff Attorney, but will have opportunities to work closely with the whole ACLU of Delaware team.
- Start date: Preferably by June 1, 2022, but an earlier or later date may be negotiated. Clerkship would last through the end of summer 2022.
- Hours: Up to 40 hours per week.
- Compensation: $24-30 per hour, depending on experience.
- Internship location: This internship is based out of the ACLU-DE office in Wilmington, Delaware, but will primarily be remote unless otherwise noted.
Roles and responsibilities
Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to the following:
- Conducting legal research and writing legal memos that analyze the viability of claims received through legal intake.
- Researching and writing memoranda to ACLU-DE staff, cooperating attorneys, and pro-bono law firm partners on legal questions arising out of ongoing litigation or potential litigation.
- Identifying salient and viable intake.
- Communicating with prospective plaintiffs, including conducting intake interviews that memorialize prospective clients’ experiences.
- Assisting the policy & advocacy department with research into the potential impact of legislation on Delawareans’ rights, as well as assisting in the drafting of potential legislation to be utilized in the 2023-2024 legislative session.
- Other duties as assigned
Experience and qualifications
Law clerks should possess the following:
- A rising second- or third-year law student
- Excellent writing, research, and communication skills
- A deep interest in issues related to civil rights and civil liberties, police practices, constitutional and criminal law, access to justice, and diversity, equity, and inclusion
- Ability to efficiently handle multiple projects
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, Google Drive, and conducting internet research;
- The initiative to see projects through to completion;
- A commitment to civil liberties, civil rights, and social justice; and
- Commitment to the mission of the ACLU
Contact
Please send a cover letter, resume, and a legal writing sample to [email protected] with “Law Clerk Search” as the subject line of the email. Applications will be reviewed regularly and the position will remain open until filled. All interviews will be held remotely at this time.
The ACLU of Delaware is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from all qualified individuals including women, people of color, persons with disabilities, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender individuals, people who have been involved with the criminal justice system, and people over 55. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities.
