Emilia Lechuga-Bass Civil Rights InternshipApplication

ASSEMBLYMEMBER KAREN BASS
47TH ASSEMBLY DISTRICT
For Immediate Release: February 1, 2007
Contact: Kellie Todd Griffin
Phone: (323) 937-4747

LOS ANGELES --- Majority Leader Karen Bass announces the establishment of the Emilia Lechuga-Bass Civil Rights Internship by Litt, Estuar, Harrison & Kitson Law Firm. The internship is for recent college graduates who are planning to attend law school with the objective of becoming civil rights or public interest lawyer.

This internship is named after Emilia Lechuga-Bass, who was a young woman planning to attend law school with the hope of practicing civil rights law. She was going to work at the firm prior to attending law school. Emilia, who came from a politically active family in Los Angeles, was to work on a range of issues to introduce her to the world of civil rights law. She was to more closely link the firm’s civil rights impact work with the goals and needs of Los Angeles communities by partnering with community organizations. Tragically, Emilia was killed in a car accident just before beginning her work at the firm.

So that others may reach their goals, the firm has created an annual internship in Emilia’s name to provide experience for young people hoping to attend law school with the goal of practicing civil rights and public interest law. The internship will provide an introduction into these areas by gaining real world experiences in a civil rights/public interest law firm.

1. Applicants for the Internship must meet the following criteria:
   
2. Have graduated from undergraduate college within two years of the commencement of the internship.
   
3. Intend to attend law school and to ultimately practice civil rights/public interest law.
   
4. A history of community service or political activity.
   
5. Skills in the use of Microsoft Office applications.
   
6. Completion of the Internship Application.

Factors considered by the firm in choosing each year’s civil rights intern will include academic performance, community and political experience, work experience, writing skills, and references. Experience in the Los Angeles area working with communities of color, and fluent bilingual skills, are considered a plus. California Assemblymember Karen Bass, Professor Gary Blasi of the UCLA School of Law, and firm partner Barry Litt will serve on the committee to choose the intern. Compensation for the intern in 2007-8 is set at $16/hour, plus health and dental benefits.

Individuals who wish to apply must submit the attached Application plus the following:

1. Official College Transcript
   
2. Three Letters of Recommendation from:
   a. Professor;
   b. Former or Current Employer(s); and
   c. Political or community groups with which you have worked.
   
3. Resume
   
4. Writing sample. The writing sample must be an example of your own original writing, unedited by others, and be no more than ten (10) pages in length.

For more information on the Emilia Lechuga-Bass Internship, contact Leticia Moreno at (213) 386-3114. Applications are due annually by April 1st with a decision being made by May 15. The internship will last from July 1 to June 30, year-to-year.

Emilia Lechuga-Bass Civil Rights Internship
Litt, Estuar, Harrison & Kitson, LLP
1055 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1880
Los Angeles, CA 90017

Applicants may also e-mail a completed application to lmoreno@littlaw.com. Letters of recommendation and transcripts included in e-mailed applications must be scanned and attached in PDF format. The remainder of the application materials may be attached as Word.