Volunteer Opportunity, Judicial Selection Project

Alliance for Justice is a national association of over 100 organizations, representing a broad array of groups committed to progressive values and the creation of an equitable, just, and free society. AFJ works to ensure that the federal judiciary advances core constitutional values, preserves human rights and unfettered access to the courts, and adheres to the even-handed administration of justice for all Americans. It is the leading expert on the legal framework for nonprofit advocacy efforts, providing definitive information, resources, and technical assistance that encourages organizations and their funding partners to fully exercise their right to be active participants in the democratic process.

 

Through its Judicial Selection Project, Alliance for Justice monitors nominees to the federal bench at all levels, maintaining a database and other information on the prospective and current judges. The Project also engages in substantial education of the public and of senators to ensure that only fair, qualified, individuals committed to social justice are confirmed.

Volunteer Role and Responsibilities:

Each year, the Judicial Selection Project works with numerous volunteer law students who assist in the research for reports on nominees to the Circuit and Supreme Courts.  The primary task assigned to most law student volunteers is reading and summarizing decisions that nominees have written as state or lower federal court judges.  Summaries should be brief—one paragraph—and should include the basic facts and a description of the nominee's decision, as well as the votes of other judges if the case was before a panel.   The purpose of the summaries is twofold: to identify whether the nominee fairly applied the law, without taking into account his or her political agenda, and to flag any potential controversy surrounding the case.  These summaries will often go directly into the comprehensive report AFJ puts out on each nominee. 

Schedule:

Volunteering at AFJ is very flexible.  Law student volunteers may pick up cases anytime during business hours, and they may work either at the office or from home.  Volunteers choose the number of cases they take according to their available time, and they may email summaries back when they finish.  Optimally, we would like to have summaries within about a week of the pick up date, but we recognize the rigors of law school and will be understanding if more time is needed.

Contact:

Volunteers will be supervised by Joe Steinberg, and he would be happy to answer any questions.  Joe can be reached at joe.steinberg@afj.org

Alliance for Justice
11 Dupont Circle NW, 2nd Floor
Washington, DC 20036

 

If you have difficulty with the online application, materials may be submitted via email to alliance@afj.org. Please include the job title in the subject line of the email.