TITLE: Children’s Legal Internship
LOCATION: New York, NY
START DATE: SPRING 2025
DURATION: January 2025 – April 2025 – Hybrid Schedule
POSITION REPORTS TO: Mary Wilcox and Jessica Lazo

SCOPE OF WORK (Children’s Legal Intern): The Children’s Legal Services (CLS) program in New York provides legal representation to unaccompanied children. To be eligible for services, unaccompanied children must be under the age of 18 at the time they enter the CLS program, have no immigration status, and, at same time, have been officially designated as an unaccompanied child by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). We help them understand the immigration systems, prepare them for hearings, evaluate and advise them on the types of immigration applications they can file, and assist them with preparing their filings. Many cases will also involve hearings in NY state court, and we provide preparation and representation for those hearings as well.

RESPONSIBILITIES:
Support in building and fostering relationships with our young clients by participating in client meetings.
Provide administrative support to the Children’s Legal Services team, including checking for upcoming court hearings, communicating regularly with clients, preparing applications, drafting supporting documents, and support in filing with appropriate agencies.  
Perform research on immigration issues, country conditions, etc.
Partake in online immigration law trainings and webinars.
Assist in tapping into other IRC NY programs to get additional support for clients when needed, such as educational resources, etc.


LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
Intern will gain exposure and understand various immigration processes and reliefs available to unaccompanied children.
Intern will gain an understanding of a trauma-informed, client centered approach and the special considerations when working with children in a legal setting.
Intern will gain exposure to NY family court and procedures.
Intern will learn how to manage client cases within established deadlines.
Intern will develop problem solving skills, client services skills, and intercultural social work skills.