Summer 2025 Law Student Internship

Community Legal Services of Philadelphia offers a summer internship program for approximately 15-20 students that have completed their first or second year of law school. 

CLS offers a rich and exciting summer internship experience. Our law students receive exceptional training and the opportunity to work with some of the most talented legal minds in civil legal services.

Student interns at CLS will be placed into one of our seven legal units, the Youth Justice Project, or our Medical-Legal Partnership, and students will also learn about the other areas of CLS’s work through programming offered throughout the summer. All CLS interns will have the opportunity to work directly with clients, engage with the communities we serve, and contribute to systemic advocacy efforts to advance economic and racial equity.

At CLS, we are actively engaged in dialogue regarding how legal services organizations can contribute to and advance racial justice for low-income communities. CLS’s Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer, supported by the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, structures this conversation as CLS continues to find ways to enhance its legal practice model. 

CLS is also committed to ensuring our staff, including our law student interns, reflect the clients and communities we serve. We strongly encourage law students from diverse backgrounds to apply for our internship. In your cover letter we invite you to tell us how your unique background and/or experiences can contribute to the diversity, vitality, and cultural perspective of our staff, clients, and legal practice. 

CLS also recognizes that the law student internship experience is a critical career steppingstone, as many of our former interns eventually go on to be selected as attorney fellows. CLS offers the Senator Roxanne Jones Fellowship and the Amber Racine Fellowship, which are awarded annually on a competitive basis to two law students of color who have accepted an offer to intern with CLS. Both Fellowships include a financial award and mentorship support to enable future leaders in public interest law to spend their summer interning at CLS.

To apply for a summer internship please submit the following below by clicking "Apply Now" 

• Resume 
• Cover letter addressing interest and experience in public interest and poverty law/racial justice advocacy
• Law school transcript
• List of three (3) references

Second-year law students are welcome to apply for a 2024 summer internship now. CLS will not review any applications submitted by first-year law students until after December 1, 2024. We ask that first-year students refrain from submitting applications through our website until after December 1, 2024.

Additional Fellowship Application
The Amber Racine and Senator Roxanne Jones Fellowships are available on a competitive basis to law students with financial need from underrepresented groups based on race, color, religious creed, ancestry, age, sex (including sex assigned at birth, gender identity or expression and sexual orientation), national origin, or disability.  Both Fellowships include a financial award of $7,500 and mentorship support to enable future leaders in public interest law to spend their summer interning at CLS.  

We aim to give students the information they need to financially plan for the summer. Therefore, eligible law students should apply for the Fellowships when they submit their application for CLS’s summer internship. Fellowship selection will take place on a rolling basis, so students are encouraged to apply early. Students will be notified if they received a Fellowship when their internship offer is extended.  

Internships at CLS are otherwise unpaid. CLS will work with our students to find sources of funding for the summer if needed.

To be considered for the Fellowships, please submit an additional one (1) to three (3) page personal statement with your internship application in which you address the following areas:

• Background: Tell us about yourself and how your background as a person of color played a role in informing your decision to attend law school and in pursuing a career in public interest legal services.
• Your accomplishments and achievements in work, life, school and your community.
• Demonstrated commitment to public interest work and serving the needs of underserved communities.
• Special circumstances establishing your financial need.
• Your future goals and dedication to a career in the public interest legal services profession.
• All other funding sources applied for and status of each
• Any other information you think the Selection Committee may deem relevant that you would like us to take into consideration.