STRATEGIC LEGAL ADVOCACYThe Strategic Legal Advocacy team identifies and addresses cross-cutting changes in judicial doctrines that affect our clients' ability to vindicate their rights. These include legal doctrines affecting justiciability, jurisdiction, the scope of federal power, and judicial review of agency actions. The team serves as a resource within Earthjustice by providing assistance on novel or difficult legal issues that arise in our litigation, with a focus on cases that could have far-reaching effects, including those that may reach the Supreme Court. The team engages with the broader environmental and progressive legal communities, including assisting with strategic coordination between organizations, coordinating and hosting continuing legal education programming and webinars, and serving as a consultant or co-counsel. The team also prepares a biweekly bulletin summarizing significant legal developments across state and federal courts.
Learn more about the Strategic Legal Advocacy team's work.
RESPONSIBILITIES Summer Law Clerks will have the opportunity to work with several attorneys on case development and litigation strategy. Students may draft pleadings and briefs, do legal research, develop strategy and legal theories, gather evidence, and attend client meetings and court proceedings. Earthjustice's summer law clerk program also includes various programmatic offerings, such as in-person and virtual seminars with attorneys and guest speakers on current environmental issues, interactions with other local and regional environmental groups, and a job interview workshop.
COMPENSATION Earthjustice summer law clerkships are paid positions. The total stipend amount will be dependent on any external funding a student secures, such as through their law school's summer funding program. Earthjustice will provide a one-time stipend at the start of the clerkship in the amount of $1,382.00 per week, minus the total amount received from any other sources and applicable taxes. The summer law clerkship is designed to be 10 weeks long at full-time hours (37.5 hours/week).
You are welcome to pursue outside funding. The ability to secure outside funding will not be considered as part of the hiring process.
HOW TO APPLY Eligibility: Candidates must be enrolled in a U.S. law school through fall 2027 (i.e., not graduating before December 2027) and be available to commit ten weeks during summer 2027. Summer law clerks must work from the U.S. during their clerkship.
HOW TO APPLYInterested candidates should submit their complete application via Jobvite by September 7, 2026. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Each Earthjustice litigation team participates in clerk hiring; candidates may submit applications to whichever and however many litigation teams they are interested. Please be prepared to respond to our September follow-up e-mail, requesting your ranked choice of the teams for which you have applied. Do not include such rankings within your Jobvite application.
Application Materials Requested:
- Cover letter that addresses:
- (1) relevant aspects of your background that are not apparent or fully explained in your resume;
- (2) why you are drawn to Earthjustice's mission and the litigation teams for which you are applying; and
- (3) whether there are particular environmental or public interest issues that inspire you.
- Additional documents (select "Add Files" in Jobvite):
- (1) A recent legal writing sample of no more than 10 pages that primarily reflects your work. Please include a cover page indicating the extent to which your writing sample reflects edits and feedback from others.
- (2) Unofficial transcript.
- Finalists will be asked to submit two references; these may be law school faculty or legal professional, clinical, or volunteer supervisors.
RESOURCES While identical applications for each team will be considered, we recommend tailoring your cover letter to describe why you are interested in that specific team. Additional information about our hiring process and tips for success can be found at https://earthjustice.org/about/jobs/hiring-process.
If you experience any technical difficulties or require any accommodations throughout the hiring process, please contact us at [email protected]. No phone calls, drop-ins, or hard copies.
