Navigating Legal Internships in Pittsburgh: A Comprehensive Guide

Legal internships in Pittsburgh offer invaluable opportunities for aspiring legal professionals to gain practical experience, develop essential skills, and explore diverse areas of law. This article provides a comprehensive overview of legal internship opportunities in Pittsburgh, focusing on eligibility, application processes, and the benefits of participating in such programs.

Opportunities with the Education Law Center of Pennsylvania

The Education Law Center of Pennsylvania (ELC-PA) provides legal representation, engages in impact litigation, and advocates for policies that advance the education rights of underserved students. These students include students of color, students impacted by poverty, students with disabilities, multilingual learners, students experiencing homelessness, LGBTQ youth, students involved in the foster care and juvenile justice systems, and students at the intersection of these identities.

ELC-PA offers internships in both its Philadelphia and Pittsburgh offices.

Philadelphia Office Internships

Fall & Spring Semesters: 2L and 3L students can apply for internships or practicums during the school year. It's recommended to submit a resume and cover letter to Rebecca Preuss by November 1 for Spring positions and April 15 for Fall positions.
Summer Internships: 1L and 2L students are invited to apply for summer legal internships. Applicants should demonstrate a commitment to racial justice and education access for all students, particularly underserved populations. A resume, cover letter, writing sample, and three references should be sent to Rebecca Preuss by January 15th, though applications will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis.
ELC-PA also seeks a full-time paralegal in their Philadelphia office to provide paralegal support to attorneys.

Pittsburgh Office Internships

Fall & Spring Semesters: Applications from 2L and 3L students for internships or practicums during the school year will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Summer Internships: The Education Law Center of Pennsylvania invites 1L and 2L students to apply for summer legal internships in its Pittsburgh office. Applicants should be committed to racial justice and education access for all students, particularly underserved populations. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office

The Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office offers various opportunities for undergraduate and law students to gain hands-on experience in the criminal justice system. The District Attorney’s Office serves as the Chief Law Enforcement Office of the county and accepts referrals from more than 100 active police departments including the City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, the Allegheny County Police Department and the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Department.

The internship program operates out of the main office, located in the Allegheny County Courthouse, in downtown Pittsburgh, with some positions in the satellite office in Dormont. The office employs over 100 attorneys divided into various subdivisions and areas of expertise. The internship program is administered by Deputy District Attorney Sarah Weikart assisted by Assistant District Attorneys Heather Schultz and Stephen Sliger. All students participating in the summer program are expected to be present in the office for 15-20 hours per week.

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Internship Opportunities

Paid Intern: Approximately 20 paid interns are hired for the summer program. Paid interns are required to work in the office for 20 hours per week. These positions are filled as they become available.
Extern: Law students may apply to work in the DA’s Office on a for-credit basis. Credits must be pre-approved before an externship offer will be extended.
Undergraduate: Undergraduates who can receive school credit for an internship through the office may be extended offers on a limited basis; credit must be pre-approved by the school. The number of undergraduate intern positions is very limited.
Allegheny County Bar Association (ACBA) Summer Clerkship Program: The DA’s Office participates in this program administered by the ACBA for 1Ls.
Allegheny County Bar Foundation Law Student Summer Fellowship: The DA’s Office participates in the Bar Foundation’s fellowship program for 2Ls.

Application Process

All students should provide a copy of their resume, cover letter, and school transcript. Law students at specific institutions may need to apply through their school’s OCI program. Interested undergraduates should submit a resume, school transcript and cover letter to Lynn & Sarah by the deadlines listed above. No preference is given to any school or the process by which an individual applies.

Law students and undergraduates interested in earning credit towards their coursework with an externship during the school year may apply by submitting a resume, school transcript and cover letter to Lynn and Sarah. The cover letter should indicate approval from the institution to earn credit for time in the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office, and the semester during which the externship will take place. Approval of credits by the school does not guarantee an externship in the office.

Practical Experience

Through both the Summer Intern Program and School Year externships, certified law students can provide representation to clients at court hearings. Generally, to become certified under Bar Admission Rules 321 and 322 students are required to have successfully taken and completed an Evidence course and completed an Application for Certification for Formal Participation in Legal Matters by Law Students Under Pa.B.A.R. 321 and 322, along with the completed Dean’s Certification Under Pa.B.A.R. Students may appear in court on behalf of the Commonwealth under the direct supervision of an Assistant District Attorney.

The Criminal Prosecution Program at the Duquesne University School of Law features a practical aspect at the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office. Deputy District Attorney Jennifer DiGiovanni and Judge David Spurgeon are the instructors for this course. University of Pittsburgh School of Law students can cross-enroll in the Duquesne Law Criminal Prosecution Program as long as a class capacity allows and with the approval of Vice Dean Jerry Dickinson.

Other Internship Opportunities

Paralegal Internships

The goal of paralegal internship programs is to introduce college students to the legal field by training them in entry-level paralegal skills and thereby providing experience that will benefit students when searching for a paralegal position. Responsibilities of a paralegal intern include assisting with office-wide filing, answering phone calls, assisting paralegals with large copy jobs and drafting miscellaneous correspondence when needed. Paralegal interns will be trained to draft basic pleadings and how to file and serve with various courts.

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Applicants should have a record of excellent communication and organization skills and the ability to multi-task and work proactively. Paralegal internships are often unpaid but can be used for course credit. Applicants should be available at least 15 hours per week.

Housing Law Internship Program

The summer program is a 10-week immersive program in housing law. After a week of substantive training, students will have their own caseload for which they can provide advice, negotiations, and representation at district justice and arbitration hearings. Interns receive substantive training and hands-on experience with clients unlike many other internship settings where students are only doing research and writing.

Equal Opportunity and Accommodation

The Department remains steadfast in its commitment to equal employment opportunity (EEO) and treating employees with fairness, dignity and compassion. We must ensure that no applicant for employment or employee of our Department is denied equal opportunity because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex - including pregnancy - or because of age, physical or mental disability, protected genetic information, parental status, marital status, political affiliation, or any other non-merit based factor and that all have the freedom to compete on a fair and level playing field. To learn more, please view the Department’s full Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement.

This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.The Department encourages qualified applicants with disabilities, including individuals with targeted/severe disabilities to apply in response to posted vacancy announcements. Qualified applicants with targeted/severe disabilities may be eligible for direct hire, non-competitive appointment under Schedule A (5 C.F.R. § 213.3102(u)) hiring authority. Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to contact one of the Department’s Disability Points of Contact (DPOC) to express an interest in being considered for a position. Department of Justice or a federal contractor acting on its behalf from inquiring about an applicant's criminal history record, either in writing or orally, before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment.

Additional Considerations

Citizenship: Citizens meeting immigration and appropriations law criteria may apply for employment with other DOJ organizations. citizens is extremely rare; such appointments would be possible only if necessary to accomplish the Department's mission and would be subject to strict security requirements. and another country will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Veterans’ Preference: There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of Justice considers veterans' preference eligibility as a positive factor in attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veterans' preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documentation (e.g., the DD 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty and other supporting documentation) to their submissions.

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