Public Interest Indian Law Fellowship Programs

Berkey Williams LLP (Berkeley, CA)

Position Type:  Fellowship

Practice Area(s): Indian/Native American

Geographic Preference(s): West (CA, HI, NV, UT, CO, MT, WY)

Description: Berkey Williams Public Interest Indian Law Fellowship

Berkey Williams LLP (BW) established the Public Interest Indian Law Fellowship Program in 2005. The aims of the Fellowship are to encourage recent law graduates to work in the field of Indian law and to provide the Fellows with an opportunity to pursue public interest projects in Indian country. The Fellow is encouraged to develop innovative legal strategies for projects which may not traditionally be feasible endeavors for a private law firm. The Firm’s intent is to provide bright, creative law graduates with the time and resources to tackle public interest, social justice, and related issues in Indian country. The Fellowship intends to contribute to the development of public interest Indian law leaders of the future, whatever their career paths might be.

About Berkey Williams

The firm is a private, for-profit partnership with a significant public interest focus. The firm has three attorneys and two paralegals in Berkeley, California, one attorney in Washington, DC, one attorney in Bozeman, Montana, two attorneys in New York, and one attorney in New Mexico. The firm works exclusively for Indian tribes and tribal organizations, and currently has clients throughout the United States. Natural resources protection, environmental justice, water and fishing rights, recovery of ancestral lands, tribal sovereignty, self-governance, economic development, Indian child welfare, employment, and health care are representative areas of work. The Firm’s work is funded primarily by its fee-paying tribal clients, as well as generous contributions from private foundations. More information may be found at the firm’s web site: www.berkeywilliams.com.

 About the Fellowship

The one-year Fellowship offers a competitive salary, full benefits, training, flexibility in balancing work and a private life, and the opportunity to work with experienced attorneys in an established firm focused exclusively on serving Indian tribes and tribal organizations. The Fellow will work in the California office. The Fellowship begins in September, 2013, with some flexibility depending upon the candidate’s schedule. Berkey Williams is committed to recruiting attorneys who will bring a variety of experiences to the firm’s clients, and to supporting them by providing the resources necessary to building a strong career in Indian law.

The projects on which a Fellow might work are subject to the creativity of the Fellow and the needs or demands of a particular client tribe or tribal organization. In the past, the Berkey Williams Fellow has worked for organized but unrecognized California tribes seeking to protect cultural sites threatened by land development, and tribes whose children are subject to state juvenile dependency proceedings. The Firm’s public interest and pro bono work includes projects intended to protect cultural sites, promote Indian-organized educational institutions, connect Indian communities to electric and telecommunications grids, recover ancestral lands, expand economic development opportunities for tribes, and others.

Qualifications and Selection Criteria

Applications are encouraged from recent law graduates with a demonstrated commitment to Indian law. Preference is given to candidates, both Indian and non-Indian, who demonstrate personal or professional experience and identification with Indian communities. High academic achievements are certainly considered, but they are weighed with other equally significant factors: personal accomplishments, professional goals, cultural competence, and the capacity to work conscientiously and independently as needed. Candidates with interest in specific public interest projects are encouraged to bring their proposals to the firm. Candidates are encouraged to seek their own funding as well, as the firm’s ability to offer the fellowship is contingent on funding. Membership in the California Bar, or the Bar of another state, though not essential, is a significant factor in the firm’s evaluation of candidates.

Applying for the Fellowship

Interested law graduates should send a resume and a writing sample to Gloria Coronado, Administrative Assistant, at gcoronado@berkeywilliams.com. If you have any questions, please email. Deadline to apply is January 31, 2013.

Desired Class Level:  RECENT GRADS

Posting Date: December 17, 2012

Expiration Date: January 31, 2013

Contact: Gloria Coronado, Administrative Assistant

2030 Addison Street Suite 410 Berkeley, California 94704 United States

Sample Page

Resume Receipt:  E-mail, Other (see below)

Default email for resumes.: gcoronado@berkeywilliams.com

How to Apply:

Interested law graduates should send a resume and a writing sample to Gloria Coronado, Administrative Assistant, at gcoronado@berkeywilliams.com. If you have any questions, please email. Deadline to apply is January 31, 2013.

Additional Documents:

Writing Sample, Other Documents

 ID: 21907