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The most rewarding aspect of my experience at MFY was the awesome feeling I had at the end of the day, that in some way, small or large, I had really helped the women and children in the Family Violence Prevention Project.
—Jennifer Burkavage, Summer Intern

Volunteer Opportunities

MFY offers many opportunities for attorneys, law school graduates, and law students to contribute to helping low-income New Yorkers gain access to justice:

Summer Program for Law Students and Interns | Post-Graduate Fellowships
Pro Bono Attorneys | Extern Program | Lawyers in Transition


Letter from a Summer Intern

When I came here, I had no experience in employment law. But very quickly I was trained and was able to advise clients, and advocate on their behalf in hearings. I really liked our group of interns and I enjoyed working with them in the library because we got to know what each of us was working on and were able to support each other, even though we were in different units. I felt like my supervisors trusted me enough to give me a lot of responsibilities, yet they were open to my questions when I didn't have a clue or felt overwhelmed. They were also very open to our ideas so I didn't feel like I was the lowly intern who was only supposed to be seen but not heard.

I really enjoyed the brown bag lunches because I got to learn what MFY as a whole does. I felt I had a great balance of training time, research and writing time, and interacting-with-clients time.

Finally, I really thought it was great seeing the attorneys practice what they preach. They are very passionate about their work, dedicated to their clients and always respectful to people most people would treat rudely.

—Hanna Yoon, 2003 Intern
UCLA Law School
 
Summer Program for
Law Students and Interns
Students spend ten weeks working with MFY staff attorneys, interviewing clients, drafting court documents, advocating for clients, conducting research, and assisting attorneys in court. Super-vising attorneys and staff conduct weekly lunch seminars on various substantive areas. While limited resources prevent us from offering a stipend, we help students find outside funding sources.

Over the past several summers, MFY has hosted interns from a wide array of law schools, including the City University of New York (CUNY), New York University, Georgetown University, Northeastern University, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Pennsylvania, Fordham University, and New York Law School.

Students interested in serving as Summer Interns should send a cover letter and resume via post or e-mail to the following address. Please indicate the practice area in which you are most interested: Housing/Neighborhood Preservation; Mental Health Law Project; Adult Home Law Project; Workplace Justice Project; Pro Bono Adoption Project.

Summer Intern Coordinator
MFY Legal Serivces, Inc.
299 Broadway, 4th floor
New York, NY 10007
E-mail: summer@mfy.org

For applications for fellowships from Equal Justice America, please go to: http://equaljusticeamerica.org


I sought out a fellowship at MFY because I wanted the opportunity to work directly with clients in trying to address their immediate legal problems, and I was not disappointed. From the beginning, I spent a good portion of my time interviewing clients, reporting back to them on our research, and representing them at administrative hearings. The attorneys on the project were always available to provide guidance on both discrete legal issues, and more generally on how to be an effective advocate. Throughout my time at MFY, I was able to research a wide variety of legal issues, ranging from questions in employment discrimination law to eligibility for unemployment benefits, and every question was relevant to a particular client with a very real problem.

My time at MFY provided an invaluable opportunity to work with attorneys knowledgeable in their field, and to put the learning into practice. Although we were not always able to apply a legal resolution to the problems raised, it was immeasurably rewarding when clients were re-hired, paid wages due, or granted benefits previously denied.

—Rose Spidell
Hays Civil Liberties Fellow 2004
 
Post-Graduate Fellowships
MFY hosts staff attorney fellows sponsored by Equal Justice America, the Skadden Fellowship, and other programs. Fellows work closely with our experienced staff attorneys and are directly supervised by each project's supervising attorney. Fellows carry their own caseload and gain valuable expe-rience in providing a wide range of services, from brief advice and counsel to representation at administrative hearings, judicial proceedings, and with appeals.

Interested applicants should send a cover letter, resume, and brief description of the proposal you would like to undertake via post or e-mail to:

Fellowship Coordinator
MFY Legal Services, Inc.
299 Braodway, 4th floor
New York, NY 10007
E-mail: fellowship@mfy.org


Throughout my career, when I have been involved in public service, I have gotten a level of satisfaction that is qualitatively different from what I get from my work as a corprorate lawyer. When you are helping someone without means, there is a level of both involvement and satisfaction that is different . . . . you can really learn a tremendous amount about the needs of people who don't have your advantages. It is a very rewarding experience.

—Stephen T. Lindo
Volunteer Guardian Ad Litem
Partner, Willkie Farr & Gallagher
 

Pro Bono Attorneys
MFY offers myriad opportunities for members of the private bar and retired attorneys to make an important contribution to MFY's mission, including:

  • Serving as counsel or co-counsel on individual or class action cases.
  • Serving as guardian ad litem in housing court proceedings where the client, although not incompetent, needs assistance in making decisions in the litigation.
  • Conducting case-related research.
Pro bono attorneys may work in any of MFY's ongoing projects.

Attorneys interested in volunteering should MFY at volunteer@mfy.org.


From a professional point of view, the five months I spent at MFY representing the city's poor and elderly did more for me as a corporate lawyer than I ever expected. On a personal level, it was one of the most gratifying experiences of my life.

—Michael C. Carroll
Former Associate
Willkie Farr & Gallagher
 
Externship Program
Two law firms currently participate in MFY's Externship Program, in which associates from each firm work as Staff Attorneys at MFY on four-month rotations. Externs receive extensive supervision and training from MFY Supervising Attorneys on all aspects of litigation and carry a full caseload. A one-week overlap at the end of each rotation enables the outgoing extern to transfer all of his or her cases to the incoming extern.

Firms interested in providing externs should contact MFY at volunteer@mfy.org.


Lawyers in Transition
Lawyers who are stepping down from full-time employment, have relocated to New York and are awaiting admission to the bar, or who want to gain public interest experience work at MFY for a period of several months to a year.

Attorneys interested in volunteering should contact MFY at volunteer@mfy.org.


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