Ninety-six Vanderbilt Law students received summer stipends to support their volunteer legal work with federal and state government agencies, in the chambers of federal and state judges; in the offices of federal attorneys general and state district attorneys and of federal and municipal public defenders; in state and municipal legal offices; with public interest and advocacy organizations; and in corporate legal offices. During summer 2019, these students worked in unpaid legal positions in 22 states, the District of Columbia, and five foreign nations, including the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal and Switzerland.
Summer stipends are supported by Vanderbilt Law School, the Vanderbilt Legal Aid Society, the Garrison Social Justice Fellowship, the George Barrett Social Justice Program, the Henricksen Charitable Trust, the McCune Charitable Trust, the Starrett Family Fund, the Hartman Public Interest Stipend Fund, the Torry Johnson Stipend Fund, the Nichols Humanitarian Fund, the Program in Law and Government, the Hyatt Fund, the Anne Riley Public Interest Fund, the Environmental Stipend Fund, the Law and Economics Fund and the Branstetter Litigation and Dispute Resolution Program. These stipends provide summer funding for students who serve in unpaid legal positions with government or nonprofit organizations.
“Every summer, our broad array of stipend funds give Vanderbilt Law students opportunities to gain practical legal experience working in judicial chambers and law offices throughout the country and abroad,” said Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs Susan Kay, who administers Vanderbilt’s summer stipend programs. “The stipends we provide, which are funded by Vanderbilt’s Legal Aid Society, alumni contributions and academic programs, help defray their living expenses while they work pro bono for government and legal aid organizations. Many students discover the area of law they want to practice after graduation while working as legal interns.”
Vanderbilt Law students are working for the following legal employers with stipend support during summer 2019:
Federal Agencies (12)
- Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Competition, Washington D.C.
- Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Competition, New York
- National Labor Relations Board, Division of Judges, New York (2)
- U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resource Division, Washington, D.C.
- U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Administrative Law Judges, San Francisco
- U.S. Environmental and Protection Agency, Denver
- U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, Washington, D.C. (3)
- U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, Student Honors Program, Washington, D.C.
- U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, Student Honors Program, Atlanta
Federal Courts (21)
Federal Appellate Courts (1)
- Judge Duane Benton, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, Kansas City, Missouri
Federal District Courts (14)
- Judge Victor A. Bolden, District of Connecticut, Bridgeport
- Judge Bruce E. Reinhart, Southern District of Florida, West Palm Beach
- Judge John Robert Blakey, Northern District of Illinois, Chicago
- Judge Julie A. Robinson, District of Kansas, Kansas City
- Chief Judge Karen K. Caldwell, Eastern District of Kentucky, Lexington
- Judge Joseph M. Hood, Eastern District of Kentucky, Lexington
- Judge Matthew F. Leitman, Eastern District of Michigan, Flint
- Judge Stephen R. Bough, Western District of Missouri, Kansas City
- Judge Peter G. Sheridan, District of New Jersey, Trenton
- Judge Jonathan W. Feldman, Western District of New York, Rochester
- Judge Jolie A. Russo, District of Oregon, Portland
- Judge Lynne A. Sitarski, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
- Judge Joe B. Brown ’65, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville
- Judge Eli Richardson ’92, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville’
Federal Specialty Courts (1)
- Chief Judge Timothy Stanceu, U.S. Court of International Trade, New York
Federal Bankruptcy Courts (5)
- Judge Deborah J. Saltzman, Central District of California, Los Angeles
- Middle District of Florida, Tampa
- Judge Deborah L. Thorne, Northern District of Illinois, Chicago
- Judge Frank Bailey, District of Massachusetts, Boston
- Judge Stacey G.C. Jernigan, Northern District of Texas, Dallas
State Courts (9)
- Judge Gregory W. Alarcon, Superior Court of California, Los Angeles
- Chief Judge Mark D. Thompson, Fifth Judicial District of Colorado, Breckenridge
- Justice Megan K. Cavanagh, Michigan Supreme Court, Lansing
- Judge Charles A. Ehrlich, Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas, Pennsylvania
- Tennessee Circuit Court for the 21st Judicial District, Nashville
- Judge Monte D. Watkins, Tennessee Criminal Court for the 20th Judicial District, Nashville
- Judge William Moody, El Paso County 34th Judicial District Court, Texas
- Virginia Judicial System, Office of the Chief Staff Attorney, Richmond
- Texas First District Court of Appeals, Houston
Federal Public Defenders (4)
- Federal Defenders of San Diego Inc., California
- Office of the Federal Public Defender for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville (3)
Municipal Public Defenders’ Offices (6)
- San Francisco Public Defender’s Office
- Office of the Public Defender, Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida, Jacksonville
- Knox County Public Defenders Community Law Office, Tennessee
- Nashville Defenders (2)
- Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, New York
State Agencies (3)
- State of Alaska Department of Law, Juneau
- Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, Nashville
- Tennessee Division of TennCare, Nashville
U.S. Attorney’s Offices (7)
- Central District of California, Los Angeles
- Eastern District of New York, Brooklyn (4)
- Southern District of West Virginia, Charlottesville
- Executive Office of the U.S. Attorney, Washington, D.C.
State Attorneys General (5)
- California Office of Attorney General, Financial Fraud and Special Prosecutions Section, Sacramento
- New York Attorney General, Investor Protection Bureau, New York
- Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, Nashville (3)
District Attorneys (4)
- Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office
- Metro Nashville District Attorney’s Office
- Office of the District Attorney, City of Philadelphia (2)
Municipal Law Departments (1)
- Nashville Metro Government Department of Law
Advocacy and Nonprofit (16)
- American Bar Association, International Criminal Court Project, Washington, D.C.
- American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, Nashville
- Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville
- Center for HIV Law and Policy, Brooklyn, New York
- Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts, Lynn
- Disability Rights Tennessee, Nashville (3)
- Earth Law Center, San Francisco
- Electronic Frontier Foundation, San Francisco
- Gifford’s Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, San Francisco
- The Justice Center, Capital Appeals Project, New Orleans
- Our Children’s Trust, Eugene, Oregon
- South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center, Columbia
- Southern Poverty Law Center, Jackson, Mississippi
- Tennessee Innocence Project, Nashville
- Tennessee Justice for our Neighbors, Nashville
- The American Bar Association, International Criminal Court Project, Washington, D.C.
- The Capital Appeals Project, The Justice Center, New Orleans
International (7)
- African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights Monitor, London, United Kingdom (2)
- Association of Defence Counsel, International Courts and Tribunals, The Hague, Netherlands
- Civitas Maxima, Geneva, Switzerland
- Commission for International Justice and Accountability, Lisbon, Portugal
- Irish Centre for Human Rights; Galway, Ireland
- Kurdish Regional Government, Washington, D.C.
Military (1)
- Center for Law and Military Operations, Charlottesville, Virginia
