The Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia is grateful to the firms around the country that are turning a difficult economic necessity into a benefit for those who are most in need. Those firms are offering their entering lawyers the opportunity to work in the public interest for a year prior to commencing practice at the firm. The Law Center is offering a fellowship opportunity open to recent law school graduates whose start dates have been deferred by their firms and whose fellowship compensation while at the Law Center will be paid by those firms.

The Law Center opened its doors in 1969 as the Philadelphia affiliate of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, an organization established at the behest of President Kennedy to bring the powerful force of pro bono legal representation to the civil rights struggle then raging in the streets. The Law Center was incorporated as an independent nonprofit organization in 1974 by leaders of the Philadelphia legal community to ensure the continuation of an effective systemic focus on civil rights issues by a full-time, dedicated staff of attorneys. Today the Law Center remains committed to advancing the Constitutional promise of equal citizenship to all persons, irrespective of race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, gender or poverty. We use public education, continuing education of our clients and client organizations, research, negotiation and, when necessary, the courts to achieve systemic reforms that advance the central goals of self-advocacy, social justice and equal protection of the law for all members of society.

We currently have an active docket of cases, many of which are class actions, in the areas of children’s healthcare, voting rights, housing discrimination, environmental health and justice, community services for people with developmental disabilities and mental illness, race and disability discrimination in employment and educational placement, and cases under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Each of these cases requires the full range of litigation tasks: preparing and responding to written discovery, document review, depositions, experts, writing briefs, oral arguments, and participation in hearings, motions and trial. Unlike litigation at a large firm, these cases give new lawyers immediate substantive experience. One of our lawyers, for example, has in her first year of practice had primary responsibility over the Law Center’s representation of a petitioner in an administrative hearing, including the opening and closing arguments, direct and cross-examinations, expert testimony, and submission of documents into evidence.

For more information contact: Jennifer R. Clarke, Executive Director, Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia, United Way Building, 1709 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Second Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19103. 215-627-7100, ext. 222. Jclarke@pilcop.org.
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The Philadelphia Public Interest Fellowship Program
The Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia is a sponsoring organization for Philadelphia Bar Association Public Interest Fellowship participants. Philadelphia Public Interest Fellowship Program is a unique partnership between the private and public interest legal communities developed in 1992 by the Public Interest Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association that provides an extraordinary opportunity for new attorneys at participating firms to defer private practice for a year while they perform valuable public service at one of Philadelphia’s legal services agencies. The fellowship is administered by the Philadelphia Bar Foundation and is underwritten by the private law firm employer, who spreads the first year salary over two years; the law firm employer also provides benefits. Visit the Bar Foundation's website to learn more about the program and how to apply.

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Volunteer Positions

The Law Center welcomes volunteers with all levels of experience to assist us in administrative tasks in connection with our special education cases and general cases. Our volunteers include parents, advocates, secretaries, paralegals and others who want to make a difference in their community. Jobs available including: organizing, indexing and reviewing documents; preparing exhibits, scanning documents, filing, data entry and other essential tasks. We seek individuals who can commit to a regular weekly schedule—either during or after regular business hours. We are currently requesting a commitment of at least two to three hours a day, one day a week. We prefer a year long commitment, if possible.

To apply for volunteer positions, submit a letter, a resume or description of your work experience and the days and times on which you are available.  Click here to submit these documents via email.

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Staff Positions

There are no available staff positions at this time.

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Past Law Center Interns describe their experience:

"Hi my name is Thereses Hudgins and I am a graduate of South Philadelphia High School. I have been assigned by Communities in Schools to do a summer internship at the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia. Communities in Schools couldn’t have matched me up more perfectly. Everyone is so nice and have such an inviting vibe. I do a lot of things here; like sort out letters, make copies, and scan papers (a whole lot of paper)…If something needs to be organized I do it. Scanning papers doesn’t seem that exciting but it’s quite fascinating. Sometimes a take a peek at the closed cases, Legal documents and can get a better feel for what this place is really about. This job is helping me for my future because it can make it clearer of what I want to study at Lock Haven University. I already feel enriched with the opportunity and this experience will enlighten me with things to come.”

-- Thereses Hudgins, South Philadelphia High 2010 Graduate, rising Lock Haven University freshman

"Hi my name is Sadae Canty I graduate from west Philadelphia High school at the top percent of my class. In August 2010 I will be attending Indiana University of Pennsylvania as a freshman. I will be major in pre-law and minor in education. That is why I’m have one of the most important experience of my life. I’m working at the Public Interest Law Center in Philadelphia as a summer intern…I was assigned this summer internship by a youth organization called Community in Schools/Teen Court. At this place my job is to help out the people who work here with whatever they need done...I know this Internship will open many more opportunities in need to make it in life. So I will take everything I learn here and use it in school as well as life. This internship will be a key to my success as I become a lawyer. I believe this because I want to become a defense Lawyer and help people get their equal rights. I also love the people here they make the environment so conformable and they always are smiling."

-- Sadae Canty,  West Philadelphia High 2010 graduate, rising Indiana University of Pennsylvania Freshman

"I had a wonderful experience at the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia....I worked on several suits brought to enforce the rights to inclusive education granted by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. I saw how great a difference skilled, passionate counsel can make in the lives of individual students—as well as how much good larger, institutional litigation can do. When I arrived at PILCOP, a forty-year-old school desegregation suit was drawing to a close. Originally brought to force the school district to integrate, the suit became a battle over the educational quality of majority minority schools. The settlement committed the district to wide-ranging and much-needed reforms....The PILCOP lawyers were generous mentors, always willing to discuss my assignments and to include me in conversations about their own work."

--- James Bickford, Rising 2L, Harvard Law School, 2009 Summer Intern

"Interning at PILCOP has provided excellent exposure to the world of public interest law. The lawyers here are dedicated and talented, and they are very willing to involve interns in every facet of their work. I had the opportunity to draft a complaint, speak to clients, craft litigation strategies, co-author an article published in a legal newspaper, and research a variety of civil rights topics. I also got to attend depositions, hearings, meetings, and rallies. I am leaving with great experiences and connections. I could not recommend PILCOP any more highly."

----Katie Poynter, Rising 3L, Columbia Law School, 2009 Summer Intern

"My time as an intern at the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia was a wonderful experience. The Seventh floor hallways of the ninth street building exert a warmth and energy that is focused towards an honorable goal of “equal justice for all.” The attorneys work closely with the interns integrating work in the office with excursions to courtrooms, the Capitol, and wherever else we can witness the products of our work. For example, I was fortunate enough to witness the culmination of a 39-year-old school desegregation case as well as attend a meeting and demonstration in Harrisburg. The older interns guided the younger ones in the office, as well as showing us the best lunch spots in the afternoon. Adding to this feeling of an integrated group, the Executive Director established a tone of mutual aid, friendliness and teamwork. I cannot stress enough the warm memories I have of the people on that Seventh Floor and the wonderful balance of enjoyment and dedication. As far as the work that I was exposed to, I cannot label it as just work. I felt that I was contributing to a worthy cause as well as immersing myself in an educational experience in law, disability rights and education reform. I was happily surprised at how quickly the interns were able to work on projects that were not merely time-consuming activities. I was also surprised, in a good way, of how everyone did everything. My last day interning was one of my most memorable as attorneys, volunteers, interns, the Executive Director, paralegals, and the secretary all worked together in the main room preparing for the 40th Anniversary Symposium. ..I would recommend interning with PILCOP to anyone interested with issues of social justice who enjoys a great work atmosphere and who is looking to spend time on meaningful tasks and projects." 

--Elias Kohn, Rising Sophmore at USC, 2009 Summer Intern

"Just a couple of short months after the Supreme Court handed down its decision in two school desegregation cases, I was researching the impact Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District would have on the desegregation efforts of the Philadelphia school system. Towards the end of the summer, I worked long hours to represent students challenging public transportation fare increases, claiming that the transportation authority had not analyzed the disproportionate impact the fare hike would have on minorities, low-income families, and students. During the summer I found many more general advantages to working in Philadelphia...Perhaps my most important discovery, as cheesy as it may sound, was the immense satisfaction I gained from making a contribution to the community in which I was raised. My clients' problems simply would not have hit so close to home had I been working in a larger, unfamiliar city."
---Dina Awerbuch, Harvard Law School 3L, 2007 Summer Intern

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