The Asian American Bar Association (AABA) of the Greater Bay Area is proud to announce its 2009 Law Foundation Scholarships. AABA recognizes the importance of fostering the growth of law students to improve the future development of the Asian Pacific American bar. AABA will award scholarships to deserving law students who are committed to advocating and improving their communities.The AABA Law Foundation is a nonprofit entity dedicated to serving the community and law students through its annual Law Foundation Scholarship awards. This upcoming year, the Foundation is offering the Raymond L. Ocampo Jr. President’s Scholarship; the Joe Morozumi Scholarship; the AABA Law Foundation Scholarship; and the Asian American Judges Scholarship, developed to recognize and honor the past and present API judges of the Bay Area.

To learn more about te AABA scholarship application process, select the Scholarship Application page at www.aaba-bay.com. The deadline to submit the application will be Monday, February 2, 2009 via email to Annette K. Mathai-Jackson at amathai-jackson@hansonbridgett.com.

Finalists will be notified if they are selected for an interview by February 13, 2009. Scholarship recipients will be recognized at the annual AABA Installation dinner.

Private Sector (large firm): December through March

Private Sector (small firms): January through May

Public Interest: December though May (N.B. PI/PS Day takes place in Feb.) -pslawnet.org is an excellent source for identifying public interest opportunities here in CA and around the world.  

Federal, State and Local Government: December through May

Judicial Externships: timelines vary, but most are December through March - check our Externships Guide (link on the For 1Ls page of the CDO website) for more information about timelines for specific courts.

Research Assistant positions: be proactive and contact professors whom you would like to assist over the winter break

Your focus in your first semester ought to be your studies. It is typical for students to wait until the break to send out cover letters and resumes. The vast majority of opportunities will not have been filled by this time. However, the most competitive employers (in private and non-profit sectors and some federal judges) will start to fill positions in December. If there are certain employers that you are particularly interested in and have reason to believe will be extremely popular among law students, you may want to send your materials soon after the December 1 start date.

Some students choose to do a mass mailing at the beginning of December (when the NALP guidelines permit first year students to send out job applications).  The choice whether to do a mass mailing is yours, but its our experience that the expense and effort are better spent in a smaller number of applications, tailored to a more informed job search.  A generic job application is unlikely to be noticed in the deluge of applications received by employers early in December.

Large firms hire a very small number of first year students, and some large firms do not consider first year students at all. There is no harm in contacting an employer to express your interest, particularly if you possess special qualifications making you a good “fit” with that employer. However, it is unusual to get a job with a big firm in your first summer.  A good source for identifying big firms is the NALP online directory. You can search for firms according to a number of different criteria, including whether or not they have indicated they hire 1Ls for the summer (from the search criteria page, select “1Ls” from the drop down menu next to the line that says “Organizations That Hire”).

Small firms hire on the basis of a short-term assessment of their needs, and while you may want to make an initial contact with small firms in December or January, you should be prepared to hear they have not yet decided on their needs for the summer (or to hear nothing at all). Then, you can follow up with the employers later in the spring (sometimes, the availability of your transcript will provide a good occasion for doing so).  A good source for identifying smaller firms is the Martindale law directory. 

Do not be discouraged if you find that spring has arrived and you have not yet finalized arrangements for the summer: opportunities continue to become available during the spring and even the early summer.

The Law Office of Lawrence A. Organ is looking for a 2L or 3L student intern for the spring semester. This is an excellent opportunity to gain experience on a variety of engaging and interesting cases. Ideal candidates will have strong legal research and writing skills.

The office is a small plaintiff-side, civil rights firm in San Anselmo, California that focuses on employment discrimination, whistleblower/retaliation, and sexual harassment. The office consists of experienced solo-practitioner Larry Organ and two associates. For more information, visit www.equalitylawcal.com.

Hours are flexible to accommodate your schedule and any applicable requirements to get academic credit. If interested or for more information, please contact Meghan Corman (Boalt ‘08) at Meghan@equalitylawcal.com.

The following judicial chambers are looking for spring 2009 externs:

Judge William Alsup, U.S. District Court of Northern California, Ninth Circuit, San Francisco, Ca

Judge Jon Tigar, Alameda County Superior Court, Oakland, Ca

For further information, please contact Sue Schechter, Field Placement Director, at sschechter@law.berkeley.edu or 510-643-7387.

The CDO’s 1Ls webpage:  links to a host of information (including a comprehensive list of 1L FAQs) relating to your summer and career options.

Career Counseling: If you would like to discuss your career options and/or job search strategies, schedule an appointment with a CDO attorney-counselor online, call 642-4567, or come by our office - 290 Simon.

Resume and Cover Letter reviews: First-year students interested in receiving advice on resumes and cover letters should read our Resume and Cover Letter Writing Guides, attempt a first draft of a legal resume, and then meet with a CDO attorney-cousnelor to review it. 

NOTE: we have cleared our appointment schedules to conduct quick drop-in resume reviews on the mornings of November 14th, 17th and 18th (9 a.m. to noon) on a first-come, first-served basis.   

The b-Line: a career services application that allows you to do employer research, apply for/bid on interview slots during Spring and Fall On-Campus Interview Programs and, most importantly for this semester, search job listings from employers targeting Boalt students and, for many, submit application materials online.  A quick link to the b-Line can be found on the CDO homepage.

NOTE: The b-Line also contains a searchable database of summer employment evaluations from prior classes.  A quicklink to Summer Evaluations appears on the b-Line homepage.

Summer Public Interest Fellowships webpage:  a resources page that will help you figure out how to fund summer voluntary internship work with government or public interest employers.   

NB:  NALP guidelines indicate that first-year students and employers should not initiate contact with each other before December 1.

Spring 2009 WOA TA Positions

We are now soliciting applications for Teaching Assistants for the 1L Written and Oral Advocacy Class, Spring 2009.

Information about the position can be found outside the office of Roxanne Livingston, 1L Skills Program Assistant, Room 461 Boalt.

Applications are due by Wednesday, November 12, 2008.

IMPORTANT FOR 1Ls: Are you looking for summer 2009 employment? Need advice on where to start looking for a summer job? Would you find it helpful to have an attorney adviser at one of the top IP firms? If yes, participate in the 1L Law & Technology Mentor Program.

You will be matched with an attorney from a top IP firm in the Bay Area and you can email or phone this mentor and ask questions from “Is your firm hiring 1Ls?” to “What should I wear to a reception?” We have a bunch of firms who want to meet Boalt students and help you. If you are interested, please email Louise at llee@law.berkeley.edu and provide the following information:
* Name
* Email Address
* Undergraduate School
* Graduate School and Major
* Technology Interest

This seminar is a workshop for students who have written (or are in the process of writing) a course paper or independent study project on some topic related to social justice and wish to develop it into a paper of publishable quality in a supportive group environment. Students will read and comment on one another’s papers, and have the opportunity to reflect on both substantive social justice issues and the academic writing and research process. Enrollment will be by permission of Professor Harris only, and grading will be on a pass/fail basis. Successful completion of the workshop will satisfy the Boalt writing requirement.

This workshop may be of special interest to those interested in a career in academia, although it is not limited to such students. There are no course prerequisites, but students who have already completed or who are in the midst of completing another faculty-sponsored writing workshop, such as that offered by Professor Kathryn Abrams in fall 2008-spring 2009, are not eligible to apply.

To apply for this workshop, please send an email to Professor Harris by Tuesday, November 11, 2008 that includes the following information:

! Name
! Program (J.D. or Ph.D.) and year in program
! A short description of your paper (no more than three paragraphs, please)
! What course you are writing the paper for, or the name of your independent study adviser

Please include in the subject matter heading of your email “Social Justice Writing Workshop.” If you have a draft of the paper itself, or even an outline or a bibliography, please attach it to your email. (Rough drafts welcome!)

3 BR 2 BA house for rent in Richmond View/El Cerrito area. 1 year lease. $1850/mo. easy freeway access. frig, washer and drier. quiet neighborhood. no pets.
510 758-7750
b.khalil@comcast.net

We had a great turnout at last week’s program with Dean Edley and Maria Echaveste on how to land a job in the next administration. 

Click here for a recent article on the transition process. 

We also wanted to provide you with links to information on both the White House Fellows Program (Feb 9th deadline for 3L students) and the White House Summer Internship Program.  (The deadline for the Summer 2009 program has not yet been established; however, the deadline for the 2008 summer internship program was Feb. 26th). 

Please feel free to contact Eric Stern in our office for questions on careers in government, public policy and advocacy organizations.

In case you weren’t able to make it to the program with Dean Edley and Maria Echaveste, a webcast is available on the CDO’s Guides and Webcasts page (click on “Other Resources” then “Guides and Webcasts” — it’s entitled, appropriately enough, “How To Get A Job in the Next Administration.”)   

Please swing by the JHO Bake Sale Wednesday, October 22, and buy some sweet goodies! All the proceeds from the sale will go towards buying Halloween snacks for our students detained at San Leandro Juvenile Justice Center.

The energy oppressed poor (EOP), numbering 2.5 billion, rely on fire as their sole source of energy for cooking, illumination and heating. The EOP burn animal dung, waste, crop residues, rotted wood, other forms of “bad” biomass, and raw coal for their energy needs. Cooking on an open fire or traditional stove using biomass causes inefficient combustion, releasing dangerous quantities of carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and other pollutants. These indoor pollutants result in the premature death of over 1.5 million children and women from pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, lung cancer and asthma, and also causes chronic respiratory ailments and debilitating sickness for many more millions. The black soot caused by burning bio mass has also been implicated as the second most significant contributor to global warming.

Research assistance is required in four areas:

1. ENERGY JUSTICE building primarily on the foundations laid by John Rawls
2. THE NEED FOR INTERMEDIATE OR APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY
3. INTERNATIONAL AND US LAWS DEALING WITH ENERGY JUSTICE, Possibilities of amending the rules applicable to the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) so as to include cook stoves and black soot.
4. THE ROLE OF LAW SCHOOLS IN ADVANCING ENERGY JUSTICE, based primarily on the work of Jeremy Bentham.

To apply for this position or have questions, please contact Lakshman Guruswamy at lguruswamy@law.berkeley.edu.

The Boalt Hall Student Association (BHSA) is conducting a student survey on the online course evaluation process. The results of this survey will be used to assist in improving the course evaluation process so that it better serves both students and the faculty.

Participate in the today! Students responding to the survey will be entered into a drawing for various PRIZES! Prizes include a $25 Strada gift certificate and $10 Peet’s gift cards. Winners will be announced by next Wednesday, October 29.

The survey will close this Friday, October 24 at noon. Only students who have experience with Boalt Hall’s course evaluation process should participate.

Please swing by the JHO Bake Sale Wednesday, October 22, and buy some sweet goodies! All the proceeds from the sale will go towards buying Halloween snacks for our students detained at San Leandro Juvenile Justice Center.

Professor Jesse Fried would like to hire several RAs to assist him in connection with a variety of projects, most of which relate to executive compensation and venture capital. Work would involve research and editing, perhaps some preparation of powerpoint slides. Schedule and hours are flexible. Prefer 1L or 2L, but 3Ls with strong interest/experience in these areas are encouraged to apply. Please send cover letter and CV to jfried@law.berkeley.edu.