Washington DC Internship at LCHR

The Committee also seeks to influence the US. Government to promote the rule of law in both its foreign and domestic policy, and presses for greater integration of human rights into the work of the UN and other international bodies. The Committee works to protect refugees through the representation of asylum seekers and by challenging legal restrictions on the rights of refugees in the United States and around the world.

About the Internship Program:

The Lawyers Committee welcomes a limited number of interns throughout the year. During the academic year, interns commit to 10 - 12 hours a week. During the summer most interns work full time. Often, when computers and workstations are fully committed, interns will work from their own laptops or off-site at libraries etc.

Unfortunately, LCHR is unable to offer financial support but funding is frequently available from universities or from other organizations.

Intern projects include research, web work, writing, and some administrative tasks. Interns are encouraged to attend program and staff meetings. Our summer intern program includes a series of ‘brown bag’ lunches on subjects of interest developed by the interns. Staff and guest speakers are invited.

Asylum Program

Intern position: Work with the asylum program to ensure that asylum clients receive high quality legal representation, by assisting the staff attorney and legal assistant who provide trainings, legal updates and legal assistance to volunteer attorneys. Assist with advocacy efforts on behalf of asylum seekers, including meetings with BCIS and BICE within the Department of Homeland Security. Spotting, analyzing, and responding to legal or procedural changes that affect asylum seekers, including statutory changes, proposed regulations, and decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals or federal courts. Develop training materials for volunteer attorneys, including manuals, memoranda, videotapes, seminars and symposia and updating probono.net, an online resource hosted by the Lawyers Committee.

Advocacy

Intern position: Assist the Legislative Director and Legislative Counsel in the D.C. office on advocacy efforts at the Congressional and Executive levels. Work would include assistance with legal research and writing of memos and reports, the development of materials for general advocacy work, and communications and web based materials. Strong research and writing skills required. Issues would include: international justice and post-September 11th issues.

*Please note that due to the small size of our office, interns will work in both the asylum and advocacy areas and will not intern for only one specific area.

REQUIREMENTS:
Highly motivated, responsible individual; strong legal research and writing skills; computer literacy (MSWord, Lexis and database familiarity); demonstrated interest in international human rights issues; and ability to handle several tasks at once while working independently or as a team member. Foreign language proficiency is preferred but not required.

TO APPLY:

Please send a cover letter, resume and two references with phone numbers to

LAWYERS COMMITTEE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Summer Christy
100 Maryland Avenue N.E., Suite 500, Washington, D.C. 20002;
fax to 202-543-5999;
E-mail to wdc@lchr.org.

DEADLINES: summer is 2/1, fall is 8/1, spring is 12/1.