The Brennan Center’s Liberty and National Security (LNS) Program fights to preserve constitutional values in the post-9/11 world. Our work centers on innovative policy recommendations, litigation, and public advocacy to ensure that our nation’s commitment to national security comports with the rule of law and our fundamental freedoms. We work to end or reform policies at the intersection of national security, immigration, and law enforcement, including those relating to high-tech surveillance, that intrude on privacy and First Amendment rights – particularly those of Muslim Americans and communities of color. Our work reflects a strong focus on ensuring democratic accountability, including through pushing back on excessive secrecy and expansive assertions of executive power.
We seek law students to work alongside staff in our Washington DC office on the Brennan Center’s policy advocacy, research, and litigation initiatives. Activities may include legal and policy analysis; legislative drafting at federal, state, and local levels; administrative and legislative advocacy; public education and scholarship; and litigation in trial and appellate courts. The Brennan Center’s interns are integral to all aspects of our work, including programmatic and strategic planning. We strive to offer a fun and intellectually challenging legal intern experience that supports and supplements the vital advocacy offered by the Brennan Center. The internship lasts for the semester.
Interns may assist with a variety of activities, including conducting legal research and writing for amicus briefs, policy reports, and other advocacy documents; drafting communications to legislators; assisting with writing comments to federal agencies; attending coalition meetings; drafting posts for the Brennan Center blog; and more.
Note: This internship is in-person at our Washington D.C. office.
Qualifications: Excellent legal research, analysis, and writing skills; initiative, imagination, and versatility; and a passion for our issues.
This internship is only open to current law students.
Hours: Monday – Friday (9:00am – 5:00pm EST)
Pay: Stipends are available for students who are unable to secure funding from their law school or elsewhere. Stipend amounts vary based on class year and how much funding, if any, an applicant has secured from other sources. If offered a position, students must request and complete an application for the stipend.
Duration: May 27th – August 5th (10 weeks)
Application Deadline: April 21st, 2025
Note: The Brennan Center will follow the rules of your school regarding internships. Therefore, if a school doesn’t allow you to do a paid internship for some reason (i.e., receiving credit, etc.), then your internship will not be paid. In addition, if you are participating in a formal school internship program that allows you to work more than our stated hours, we will make a determination based on our needs and further assessment of your school’s program.
The following material is required to apply for our internship:
- a cover letter explaining why you are interested in Liberty & National Security (DC) policy issues;
- a current law school transcript;
- a legal writing sample;
- a current resume; and
- contact information for three references
To Apply: Please visit >>LINK HERE<< and upload all of the required materials (see above).
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. We encourage interested students to apply early, as the positions will be filled once qualified candidates are found. No phone calls, please.
If you have difficulty with the online system, you may send your application by e-mail to: [email protected] with "LNS DC Summer Legal Internship" in the subject line, after registering in the online system. Applying through our website is strongly preferred.
Note: The Brennan Center is committed to public health and to the safety and wellbeing of our colleagues and visitors. As such, we have adopted a policy requiring all employees working in the New York and Washington, DC offices to be vaccinated against COVID-19, or to meet the legal guidelines for an exemption.
What We Do
The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law is a nonpartisan law and policy institute that works to reform, revitalize – and when necessary, defend – our country's systems of democracy and justice.
At this critical moment, the Brennan Center is dedicated to protecting the rule of law and the values of Constitutional democracy. We focus on voting rights, campaign finance reform, ending mass incarceration, and preserving our liberties while also maintaining our national security. Part think tank, part advocacy group, part cutting-edge communications hub, we start with rigorous research. We craft innovative policies. And we fight for them – in Congress and the states, the courts, and in the court of public opinion.
