PILI will grant $260,000 to fund 56 Law Student Interns at 27 public interest law organizations across Illinois during the 2016-17 academic year and the summer of 2017.
This is the largest amount of money that PILI has ever committed to Internship funding, and reflects a new school-year Internship position at the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law. PILI also approved a new agency to host Interns in the summer, the Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice. See a full list of agencies in Illinois approved to host PILI Interns »
In addition to growing the Internship Program, PILI is in the process of raising its summer Internship stipend for the first time in 10 years. Starting last summer, Interns receive $5,500, an increase of $500 over previous years. PILI will raise the summer stipend again in 2018, for a total stipend amount of $6,000.
Students apply from law schools across the country to compete for these funded public interest law internship opportunities. PILI Interns work 400 hours during the summer or 200 hours during the school year serving low-income and underrepresented individuals and families with legal needs.
PILI has been operating its Law Student Internship Program since 1977, and it is the only program of its kind that attracts law students from across the country to serve at legal service organizations in Illinois. In addition to providing the funding for Intern stipends, PILI also offers robust educational programming and networking opportunities for Interns. The program helps PILI’s participating legal service agencies serve more clients and increase their impact while also helping law students develop their legal and client interaction skills, build their professional networks, and strengthen their commitment to public interest law and service.
Learn more about PILI’s Law Student Internship Program »