Please be respectful of the time of our attorneys and staff. Apply through the link below and direct any internship inquiries to legalintern@eff.org. Applications are now open for the Summer 2024 Intern Class, with a deadline of February 15. See below for instructions and a link to the application.
Job Description
Legal interns assist in all aspects of litigation, including legal research, factual investigation, and drafting of memoranda and briefs, while also helping with policy research, client counseling, and the development of public education materials (e.g., blog posts). EFF’s docket ranges across the technological and legal landscape, from online fair use of copyrighted materials to illegal government spying; take a look at http://www.eff.org/cases/ and https://www.eff.org/work for details about our work preserving constitutional values in the digital world.
Summer legal internships are full-time (40 hours per week) and last 10–14 weeks (typically May–August). For school-year internships, we require at least 20 hours per week for a minimum of 10 weeks.
Internships are generally unpaid; arrangements should be made with the student’s law school for work-study stipends or course credit. In recent years, EFF has been able to offer limited stipends to interns who exhaust other sources of funding and will not receive course credit. Application decisions are need-blind, and EFF will allocate any funding on a case-by-case basis.
Qualifications
- Enrollment at, or recent graduation from, a U.S. law school - law students of all levels, including LLM students, are encouraged to apply
- Demonstrated interest in and enthusiasm for civil liberties or technology-related legal issues
- Excellent research and writing skills
- The initiative and energy to see projects to completion in a fast-moving environment
- School-year internships: Preference will be given to candidates who are able to work in person at EFF’s San Francisco office at least one day per week, but all candidates local and remote are welcome to apply. Reasonable accommodations will be considered for anyone with a disability that makes in-person work a hardship.
- Summer internships: Interns will be required to work from EFF’s San Francisco office at least two days per week. Reasonable accommodations will be considered for anyone with a disability that makes in-person work a hardship.
Application Requirements & Instructions
Your application must include the following components:
- A resume in PDF format
- A cover letter in PDF format that explains why you want to work with EFF and why we should want to work with you
- A writing sample (10 pages or fewer) in PDF format. Writing samples on civil liberties and/or intellectual property issues are highly preferred, as are litigation-oriented or otherwise persuasive writing samples.
- Contact information for two references
- A 1 to 2 paragraph (100 - 500 words) response to a short-answer question. The question is as follows: Identify an issue that EFF has worked on in the past 5 years that you would be especially interested in working on, and tell us why.
Application Opening Dates & Deadlines
Summer (typically for an internship May-August): November 15-February 15
Fall Semester (typically for an internship August-December): May 20-June 30
Spring Semester (typically for an internship from January-May): September 15-November 15
Applications will be evaluated as they are received. You are encouraged to apply early, as we will be accepting on a rolling basis.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Do you offer remote internships?
- For school-year internships, preference will be given to candidates who are able to work in person at EFF’s San Francisco office at least one day per week, but all candidates local and remote are welcome to apply. Reasonable accommodations will be considered for anyone with a disability that makes in-person work a hardship.
- For summer internships, interns will be required to work from EFF’s San Francisco office at least two days per week. Reasonable accommodations will be considered for anyone with a disability that makes in-person work a hardship.
- Are law students at schools on non-semester schedules eligible for internships?
- Yes, we are flexible on the exact timing of the internship, so long as you’re with us for at least 10 weeks.
- I’ve already submitted my application—can I still update my cover letter/references/writing sample/resume?
- Yes, you may update any portion of your application by emailing legalintern@eff.org with the subject line “Update to application.”
- Are internships paid?
- No, in most cases. Arrangements should be made with the student’s law school for work-study stipends or course credit. In recent years, EFF has been able to offer limited stipends to interns who exhaust other sources of funding and will not receive course credit. Application decisions are need-blind, and EFF will allocate any funding on a case-by-case basis.
- Can you sponsor J visas?
- No, EFF is not accredited to sponsor J visas.
- Do you have legal internships for law students outside the U.S.? / Do you have volunteer opportunities for international lawyers?
- We do not have legal internships available for international law students or volunteer opportunities for international lawyers at this time. Please watch this site or EFFector mailings for internship postings.
- Do you have administrative or practicing attorney legal internship positions?
- No. To qualify as a legal intern, you must be in law school or have just graduated with a U.S. law degree.
