Legal Intern (Summer 2025)

Founded in 1979, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) is a leading non-profit organization (501(c)3) in the U.S. exclusively dedicated to defending and advancing the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their loved ones. NILC’s mission is grounded in the belief that everyone living in the U.S. regardless of race, gender/gender identity, immigration status, or economic status — should have equal access to justice, resources, and educational and economic opportunities that enable them to achieve their full human potential. Together, NILC and the affiliated NILC Immigrant Justice Fund (IJF), a 501(c)4 organization, work to advocate more directly for federal immigration reform policies. NILC is committed to advancing its mission — which intersects race, immigration status, and class — through racial, economic, and gender justice and equity orientation. 

Headquartered in Los Angeles with an office in Washington, DC, NILC seeks to achieve just laws and policies that address systemic inequities, create narrative and culture change for an inclusive and equitable society, and build a healthier and more powerful movement. For more information, please visit www.nilc.org. and www.immigrantjusticefund.org/

NILC is at an exciting moment in its organizational trajectory, supporting our five-year strategic framework and scaling the organization and its work through influencing systems, policy advocacy at the federal and state levels, engaging in movement and power building, and narrative and culture strategies in addition to continuous improvements to our operational model. We are looking for entrepreneurial, results-driven, relationship builders who are committed to NILC’s mission and values of racial justice & equity, valuing diversity, fostering partnerships & collaboration, encouraging respect & personal well-being, and striving for transparency, integrity, and honesty.

NILC encourages applications from law students to work remotely on projects benefiting low-income immigrants in one of NILC’s priority areas: ensuring that immigrants have fair and equal access to education, health care, driver licenses, and other economic supports; defending and advancing workers’ rights through a campaign to support deferred action for workers involved in labor disputes; fighting for access and fairness in immigration entry and sponsorship processes; and building power and pro-immigrant momentum through federal and state policy gains and narrative change. NILC’s recent work has focused on litigation challenging the termination of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA); litigation to challenge the government’s conduct of a Trump-era worksite immigration raid; litigation to challenge the exclusion of certain immigrants from eligibility for driver’s licenses in Indiana; and advocating for legislative and administrative policies to protect low-income immigrants and their families, including advocacy around the government’s proposed regulatory changes to “public charge.”

NILC provides a rich environment for legal interns to learn about the immigrants’ rights movement and to work alongside attorneys and policy analysts involved in national policy analysis, impact litigation, community education, and advocacy.

The Summer internship is full-time, for a minimum of 10 weeks. Interns are expected to work a minimum of 35 hours per week and will be paid $18 per hour.

• Current 2L law school student in good standing (No undergraduates will be considered).
• Commitment to NILC's mission of defending and advancing the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their loved ones. Previous experience in the immigrants' rights movement is highly preferred.
• Strong desire to pursue a career in the public / nonprofit sector.

• Applications consist of a resume, cover letter, a writing sample, and a list of at least two professional references. Please submit as a single PDF file under the “resume” upload section of the application. (If you are experiencing difficulty with submitting one comprehensive file please submit your materials to the corresponding fields.)

• (If you have any difficulties uploading the single file, please submit resume and cover letter in the designated application fields, then email a copy of your writing sample and references to jobs@nilc.org, with the subject line “Legal Internship Summer 2025 - Writing Sample and References”).

The application period for summer law clerks begins Oct. 1. Interested students are encouraged to submit applications as early as possible, but no later than Jan. 31. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis.

NILC is an equal opportunity employer; people of color and individuals from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply. NILC does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, citizenship status, ethnic background, religion, political orientation, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, or any other protected class. We consider all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative.