2027 Summer Legal Fellowe

2027 PAID SUMMER LEGAL INTERNSHIPS 

About Us 

For more than 50 years, Legal Services of the Hudson Valley (LSHV) has been providing free, high-quality legal counsel in civil matters when basic human needs are at stake, including eviction and foreclosure prevention, domestic violence, disability, elder law, healthcare, consumer fraud and more. Our services support almost 600,000 poor and low-income families and individuals who cannot afford an attorney in our seven-county service area. With the gap separating those who can and cannot afford legal representation widening each day, we work to ensure that everyone has equal access to justice, regardless of their ability to pay. As the only provider of comprehensive civil legal services in the lower and mid-Hudson Valley (Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Rockland, Orange, Ulster and Sullivan), LSHV is proud to have handled over 12,000 cases impacting over 27,000 household members including over 10,000 children last year. LSHV is made up of ten offices, and a dedicated and highly skilled staff of attorneys, paralegals, and administrative professionals.  

 Legal Services of Hudson Valley is dedicated to building a highly skilled workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve and where everyone feels supported to bring their authentic selves to work. We are committed to racial justice and promoting equity for all, and we continuously review and strengthen our processes and practices to support our staff, clients and the communities we serve. Respect is a cornerstone of relationships among our staff. Our employee resource groups are self-directed and provide a space for members to support one another and their shared vision. We encourage applications from people of all identities and backgrounds. 

Fellowship Description 

LSHV will host 10 law student fellows in our housing units and 10 law student fellows in our general and/or other practice area units. Through these fellowships, LSHV will train the next generation of social justice lawyers, giving them both practical litigation experience and an understanding of the factors that create disadvantages for low-income individuals and families. While helping LSHV attorneys and staff serve clients, law fellows will receive training, mentorship, support, and skill development and engage in advocacy. Work may include client interviewing, issue spotting, legal research and writing, preparing court documents, accompanying attorneys and clients to court, and appearing in court under a student practice order.  

• Housing Unit Fellows will help our clients to maintain the basic human and legal right to live in habitable housing and lend support to LSHV’s efforts to challenge landlord intimidation and harassment. 
• General Practice Fellows will assist our staff attorneys in a variety of practice areas, including family law and domestic violence, housing, veterans’ benefits, public benefits, consumer debt, disability, and/or immigration law.  

Details  

• 10-weekfellowship duration; 35 hours per work week required (5-day week, Mon – Fri) 
• $8,000 stipend with 5 days paid time off (PTO) 

• Fellows will be placed in LSHV offices throughout our service area, including White Plains, Yonkers, Mount Vernon, Peekskill, Poughkeepsie, New Windsor, Goshen, Nanuet, Monticello, and Kingston. 

• Fellows will be loaned laptops during the summer for conducting LSHV business. 

• Housing, transportation, work-related, and other fellowship expenses will be the law student's responsibility. LSHV will provide office parking where applicable.  
• At the conclusion of the summer, fellows may be required to provide feedback concerning their experience, the substance of which may be reproduced in full or in part in LSHV materials.  

Eligibility  

• Open to law students enrolled in a U.S. law school who will have completed two years of law school by May 2027 or are graduating in 2027. 
• Must not have previously accepted an LSHV Paid Summer Legal Fellowship (previously titled LSHV Paid Summer Legal Internship). 
• Must be able to work several days per week in person in the office where placed (our offices are hybrid, subject to disability-related reasonable accommodations. 
• Ability to travel to the office where placed and other locations, such as courts, as needed.   

Application Timeline 

• All materials must be submitted by Monday, December 21, 2026, at 11:59 pm (ET) 
• Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered. 
• Applicants selected for interviews will be notified in early January 2027. 
• Finalists will be notified in early February 2027. 

Required Submissions  

Applications will be evaluated based upon review of the following:   

• Complete Online Application with preferred office locations and practice areas 
• Unofficial Law School Transcript  
• Current Resume   
• One legal writing sample on any topic (5-page limit)    
• Statement of Interest (typed, double-spaced) 

Describe your commitment to public interest law and/or direct legal services, and what you hope to gain from LSHV’s Summer Internship Program. Please explain why you are interested in the practice area(s) you have preference in your application. 

You may include information such as personal experience, prior jobs, volunteer experience or internships and what you learned from them, as well as future career plans and professional goals. (750-word max)   

Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, pregnancy, genetic information, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other protected category under applicable federal, state, and local laws.

If you have a disability and you believe you need a reasonable accommodation to search for a job opening or to submit an online application, please email us at [email protected] or call 914-949-1305 This email is created exclusively to assist disabled job seekers whose disability prevents them from being able to apply online. Only messages left for this purpose will be returned.