Description:
Summary:The Foundation for Advocacy Inclusion and Resources (FAIR) was started in 2009 to promote diversity within the plaintiffs' employment bar in California and to educate the public about workplace fairness. FAIR provides educational and work opportunities to law students and new lawyers from diverse backgrounds to strengthen and enrich our league of lawyers who are passionate about employee justice and advancing the rights of workers.
The FAIR Fellowship is a unique 18-month fellowship that enables a new attorney to work full-time for two consecutive terms: 12 months at Legal Aid at Work (remotely) and six months at a plaintiff-side employment law firm affiliated with the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA), an organization of more than 1,200 workers' rights advocates throughout California. FAIR will fund the successful FAIR Fellow's salary during the first 12 months the Fellow is working at Legal Aid at Work. While at Legal Aid at Work, the FAIR Fellow is included in the bargaining unit represented by ESC Local 20. During the 12 months at Legal Aid At Work, the FAIR Fellow can perform work remotely from anywhere in California with a possible stipend from LAAW to travel to San Francisco to visit with LAAW supervisors. The applicant will then be matched with a CELA-affiliated private law firm for the last six months and be paid a salary and benefits by that firm. That firm is required to pay a minimum salary of $8,112 per month.
The Fellow will work closely with the supervising attorney(s) of LAAW and the CELA-affiliated private law firm. We are looking for a candidate that is interested in helping to develop and support systems and impact litigation at LAAW, particularly in the areas of racial justice, immigrant's rights and/or wage and eager to continue their litigation practice at the firm and beyond. The work performed by the Fellow may include the following duties:
Litigation:
- Support all aspects of state and federal court litigation, including pre-complaint investigation, complaint drafting, motion practice, discovery, trial preparation, trial, post-trial briefing and appellate work.
- Participate in negotiating and executing settlement of litigation.
- Communicate with and advise clients about litigation matters.
- Keep abreast of new issues in the field of employment law, legal ethics, and all other matters necessary for the vigorous and competent representation of the client.
- Maintain and preserve accurate, contemporaneous records of time spent on litigation and other work performed.
- Additional responsibilities at LAAW may include:
- Communicate with and advise clients about pre-litigation matters.
- Conduct community outreach and education.
- Participate in community organizations, such as bar groups, employment rights organizations or coalitions, related to the work of the office.
- May represent clients at administrative law proceedings, including at the EDD, the DLSE, the CRD, the DOL, and the EEOC.
- Support in advocating for laws, regulations, and policies at the local, state, and national levels to strengthen civil and workplace rights.
Requirements:
- California Bar membership. (This requirement may be waived for a reasonable period of time to allow the Fellow to take and pass the Bar examination. FAIR will provide the successful candidate up to a $10,000 stipend for bar study.)
- Zero to three years legal experience.
- Excellent written, research, analytical and verbal communication skills.
- Strong interpersonal skills, initiative, leadership and organizational skills.
- Demonstrated commitment to social justice and civil rights work and movement lawyering.
- Deep commitment to racial equity work and incorporating racial equity principles into legal advocacy.
- Deep commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and the ability to hold and foster difficult and necessary conversations about race, color, disability, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and other protected categories.
- Ability to manage multiple projects and cases simultaneously; ability to prioritize.
- Fluency in Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Arabic or Farsi is highly preferred.
- Willingness and ability to travel as required.
- At the end of the Fellowship, the Fellow is required to write a minimum 2-5 page essay about their experience and what they learned.
Applicants are required to submit the following:
- Fellowship Application Form (enclosed).
- Resume.
- Unofficial Law School Transcript.
- Two Letters of Recommendation (preference for employers and/or clinical professors). Recommendation letters should be addressed to ‘FAIR Fellowship Selection Committee', and emailed directly to: caity@fair-foundation.org
- Two References (references can be the same people who wrote letters of recommendation or someone else).
- One Writing Sample (no more than ten pages double-spaced).
- Personal Essay: ~500 words detailing your background, how you became committed to having a public interest career, and your interest in employment law. We encourage applicants to share how your lived experiences have shaped you generally and/or your desire to work in the field of employment law
