The LDF and MALDEF fellowships each give an entry-level lawyer the opportunity to spend two years as a Fried Frank litigator and then two years as a staff attorney with LDF or MALDEF. At the end of their four-year commitment, our successful Fellows are encouraged to interview to return to Fried Frank and, in some cases, they may continue on the staff of their civil rights organization. We are proud that a number of our former Fellows hold high-level positions on the staffs of both LDF and MALDEF.
The ideal candidate for a Fried Frank Civil Rights Fellowship is a third-year law student or recent graduate currently in a judicial clerkship. Candidates for the MALDEF and LDF fellowships should have a genuine interest in both corporate and civil rights litigation.
The program annually hires one Fellow for one organization, alternating each year between LDF and MALDEF. For 2017 we are hiring a MALDEF Fellow.
How To Apply
To be considered, please email the following documents to fellowship@friedfrank.com or mail them to the address below for receipt no later than August 24, 2016 at 11:59 PM EST:
• A résumé
• Two letters of recommendation (one each from a law school faculty member and an employer)
• A legal writing sample
• A 500-word essay, as described below
• A law school transcript
MALDEF Fellowship Applicant Essay
Select one or two civil rights issues of interest to you. Explain briefly why these issues are important to you and how you feel the Fellowship can serve as a vehicle to effect change in those areas, including how your experiences and/or skills may contribute to such change.
MALDEF Regional Office Placement
MALDEF litigates in regional offices around the nation in Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Antonio. Based upon your interest and background and the litigation needs of MALDEF, we will work with applicants to determine a mutually agreeable geographic placement. However, all Fellows have the option to work in MALDEF's Los Angeles office, the site of its national headquarters. We will determine a particular placement at the time of your selection for the Fellowship.
For more information, please contact:
Diversity and Inclusion
Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver and Jacobson LLP
One New York Plaza
New York, NY 10004
+1.212.859.4310
fellowship@friedfrank.com
2015 MALDEF Civil Rights Fellow: Alejandra Ávila
2016 LDF Civil Rights Fellow: J. Zachery Morris
