Public Defender Internship

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) is seeking law students for our Fall 2024 internship positions in our Lowell office.

CPCS is the state agency in Massachusetts responsible for providing an attorney when the state or federal constitution or a state statute requires the appointment of an attorney for a person who cannot afford to retain one.

• Client interviews
• Arraignment and bail arguments
• Legal research
• Drafting pretrial motions, affidavits, and legal memoranda
• Pretrial investigation, including visiting the locations of alleged crimes and interviewing witnesses
• Pretrial motion arguments

• Law students who have successfully completed or are enrolled in an evidence or trial practice class, with the written approval by their Dean, may represent clients under the supervision of a staff public defender in court per SJC Rule 3:03
• Preferred qualifications: law students who have taken classes in evidence, criminal law, constitutional law, critical legal theory, and/or trial advocacy

CPCS is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran or military status, genetic information, gender identity, or sexual orientation as required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other applicable federal and state statutes and organizational policies.