Location: Office of the Appellate Defender (Atlanta)
GPDC’s Appellate Division is seeking students interested in public defense, criminal law, appellate practice, and/or public interest work.
Currently, internships and externships will be available for students remotely. Still, they may have some in-person opportunities (such as court hearings, oral argument observations, client meetings, etc.) depending on the needs of the supervising attorneys and the student’s availability. (Health and safety are also a concern for our Division, so there are no mandatory in-person requirements.)
The Division focuses on major felony, post-conviction representation of indigent persons. We practice in over 100 superior courts statewide, the Georgia Court of Appeals and the Georgia Supreme Court. Our interns are generally assigned to one attorney, making the student to attorney ratio 1:1.
Our interns do practical work and are not assigned anything that our attorneys do not also do themselves. Our practice is client-focused. Our goal is to have our interns assist us in moving cases forward by reading and digesting transcripts, reviewing discovery, identifying appellate issues, drafting motions, drafting amended motions for new trials, drafting appellate briefs, investigating, interviewing, and corresponding with clients, watching oral arguments, participating and presenting case discussions, and any other necessity of the supervising attorney.
As each student is paired with one attorney, each student is likely to have a different experience depending on the need of the client(s) they are assigned to represent.
During semesters, hours are regulated depending on the law school requirements for class credit, and schedules are flexible to work with the student’s schedule. Summer positions are full-time, 40-hours a week, and because this is a government internship, we cannot offer compensation.
Positions are limited and available only to 2Ls and 3Ls. Priority will be given to those students who have completed criminal law, criminal procedure, evidence, legal writing, and/or constitutional law, although these classes are not required.
For consideration, please contact Anna Blitz at ablitz@gapubdef.org, and be sure to provide a cover letter, resume, and writing sample. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
