The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) will match up to five (5) Minority Law Fellows with exceptional, experienced, criminal defense attorney members for up to eight (8) weeks working in a criminal defense law practice.
About the Fellowship
The purpose of the fellowship is to advance diversity in the criminal defense community by giving underrepresented populations an opportunity to gain experience in a criminal defense law practice. Fellows will actively intern in Washington, D.C., New York, NY, San Juan, PR, or Denver, CO, as well as be invited to participate in NACDL events and networking opportunities during the summer. Each Fellow will receive a weekly stipend of $500.00
The deadline for submitting an application for the 2012 fellowship has passed. To confirm receipt of submission, contact Daniel Weir at dweir@nacdl.org. For other questions, contact Geneva Vanderhorst at genevalaw@yahoo.com, attention: NACDL Fellowship.
About NACDL
NACDL, located in Washington, D.C., is the nation’s preeminent bar association, with members in every state and from many nations, serving the criminal defense profession and is committed to serving a diverse and inclusive community of lawyers. NACDL’s mission is to: Ensure justice and due process for persons accused of crime ... Foster the integrity, independence and expertise of the criminal defense profession ... Promote the proper and fair administration of criminal justice. It provides opportunities for attorneys to connect, share information and learn from one another.
One of NACDL’s goals is to increase the number of young lawyers, women, and people of color practicing criminal defense. A disproportionate number of criminal defendants come from minority communities. It is, therefore, imperative that criminal defense attorneys be able to move our criminal justice system towards a better understanding of language, culture, customs, and economic conditions that correspond to our clients. By attracting more diverse members to the criminal defense bar, we will increase the likelihood that our clients’ racial, ethnic, and personally diverse histories will be explained and portrayed more accurately to prosecutors, juries and judges because those diverse attorneys can teach what they already understand about what it means to be diverse in a majority society.