CALL FOR CURRENT 2L LEGAL INTERNSHIP APPLICANTS –

ACLU OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA (ACLU-DC), SUMMER ‘26

The ACLU-DC seeks second-year law students for full-summer internships in the summer of 2026. (A posting for first-year law student internships, if available, will follow later in the fall semester.)

The ACLU-DC is an affiliate office of the American Civil Liberties Union, a national nonprofit organization devoted to the protection of civil liberties and civil rights through litigation, legislation, and public education. The ACLU-DC works primarily on issues that directly impact people who live in, work in, and visit the District of Columbia, and also on challenges to certain federal government policies and practices where they fall within the jurisdiction of the D.C. federal courts.

Among the matters currently on our docket are: representing Black Lives Matter-DC and individual activists in challenging the attack by federal and local law enforcement on civil rights demonstrators in Lafayette Square on June 1, 2020; a lawsuit challenging a highly invasive search practice by federal Marshals of people in pretrial detention; the representation of two D.C. agency workers who faced discrimination based on their family responsibilities (child care) in the application of remote work policies; a challenge to the D.C. police department’s practice of retaining arrestees’ cell phones for months or years after the owners are released or charges are dropped; a hostile work environment case on behalf of a D.C. Jail officer subjected to harassment and abuse based on his sexual orientation; an institutional reform case seeking to shift primary responsibility for responding to individuals’ mental health crises away from police officers in favor of mental health professionals; and a challenge to the failure of federal parole authorities to provide accommodations for people with disabilities in setting conditions of supervision. Additionally, since January, we have filed 10 cases against policies and actions of the second Trump administration – five regarding immigration (including the invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to whisk hundreds of immigrants away without due process to a notorious Salvadoran prison, inhumane conditions and lack of access to counsel for immigrants detained at Guantanamo Bay, the shutdown of asylum at the southern border, and the expansion of expedited removal), two regarding trans rights (bathroom access for trans federal workers and gender-affirming care for incarcerated trans people), one on voting rights (challenging more onerous requirements to register to vote), one on funding for family planning programs, and one on the purge of federal workers associated with diversity, equity and inclusion.

To learn more about our work, visit acludc.org.

NATURE OF INTERNSHIP

Legal interns will be exposed to and participate in the process of developing and litigating impact cases to advance civil rights and liberties. The legal intern’s primary duties will be conducting legal research for current and potential cases (and some research/analysis regarding proposed legislation in support of our policy advocacy before the D.C. Council), and drafting memoranda, pleadings, motions, and/or discovery requests. Legal interns will also likely interview potential clients and help investigate the facts of potential cases.

Depending on the state of our docket in summer 2026, interns are likely to have additional opportunities to become immersed in the work of the ACLU-DC’s Legal department, including legal strategy sessions; and court proceedings, depositions, and client meetings. ACLU-DC staff believe strongly in mentorship and in thorough and timely feedback on all work product.

Financial stipends may be available for candidates not receiving summer funding from their law schools to assist them in covering room, board and other similar expenses (not as compensation or wages for any time spent working).

QUALIFICATIONS

• You are currently a second-year law student.
• You have excellent work ethic, including dependability, diligence, the ability to take ownership over projects, and the commitment to see projects through to completion in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
• You are receptive to feedback, enthusiastic about learning and self-improvement, and eager to incorporate feedback into future work.
• You have (or are well along in developing) excellent legal research skills, including the judgment to discern what cases are relevant to a particular research question, and thoroughness in covering the question asked.
• You have (or are well along in developing) the capacity to engage in thoughtful and perceptive legal analysis, including the ability to build a logical argument, to read and understand legal decisions and statutes, and to grasp whether and how legal authorities apply to a new set of facts.
• You have (or are well along in developing) excellent legal writing skills, including the ability to present ideas in a clear and organized manner and to write a memo that teaches the reader what you have learned through your research by synthesizing (rather than just summarizing) the relevant authorities.
• You have the empathy and interpersonal skills necessary to connect with, listen to, learn from, and ask questions of clients and other community members.

TO APPLY

The deadline for applying is 11:59pm Eastern time on Sunday, September 28, 2025. If you have a disability and need any reasonable accommodations regarding any part of the application process, please email [email protected].

To complete the application, you will need to upload:

• A copy of your resume that lists relevant experience.
• A cover letter explaining your interest in and qualifications for the position.
• A list of three references, including a sentence about each one identifying what information the person can provide. We find particularly helpful the perspective of a practicing attorney or clinical supervisor who has worked with you, but we are also interested in speaking with professors, community members, coworkers, or others who can speak to your relevant skills and experience.
• In place of a transcript, a list of all law school courses that you have taken, are currently taking, or (where available) are scheduled to take next semester.

The ACLU-DC is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. The ACLU-DC encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status, or any other classification protected by the D.C. Human Rights Act or federal employment law. If you have a disability and need any reasonable accommodations, please email [email protected].