Rachel was a PILI Intern with the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Following her graduation from law school, she worked for four years at Life Span Legal Services, assisting low income domestic violence victims with orders of protection and divorce and custody case. Rachel now practices in federal court as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Illinois. Her work focuses on constitutional law questions, such as the First Amendment, false arrest and excessive force and the Commerce Clause. Rachel explains, “Working as a PILI Intern was an overall very positive experience that encouraged me to continue in public interest. It also exposed me to a different type of public interest work than I had previously experienced, so it showed me the diversity of choices available in the public interest legal world.” She believes that the lunchtime lectures were one particular way that PILI helped expand her horizons regarding the types of legal careers public interest lawyers could have. Rachel also enjoyed the conversations that she had with all of the other Interns and Fellows at her placement. She fondly recalls, “we would talk about a lot of interesting legal, social and political topics and it was great to learn from a diverse group of very intelligent law students.” Rachel has dedicated her entire career to public interest – representing low income domestic violence victims and now representing government employees. Her hope is that her career will always be dedicated to one type of public service or another.
Originally published May 2009 Read more PILI Alumni Spotlights »