Brief Service Law Clerk, Summer 2026

Children's Law Center is seeking candidates for the 2026 summer term. This position is available to candidates as a hybrid role, which has some expectation of work in-person at Children's Law Center's office in Washington, DC. The deadline to apply is January 30th, 2026.

Who We Are

Children’s Law Center is a mission-driven organization focused on providing high-quality legal services to children and families in DC.  As an organization, we envision a world in which all children have a strong foundation of family, health and education and are free from poverty, trauma, racism and other forms of oppression. Our mission is to do this work together with DC children and families, Children’s Law Center uses the law to solve children’s urgent problems today, improve the systems that will affect their lives tomorrow and strengthen our community so that change endures.  A key part of our mission is to challenge and reduce ways in which racism and other biases – structural and interpersonal – prevent each of us, our organization and the systems in which we work from providing children a strong foundation from which to thrive.   

Our greatest assets are our people.  We recognize that people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives fuel our ability to provide the best outcomes for our clients and our community. Staff members at Children’s Law Center advance the organization’s mission through their leadership, result-oriented mindset and commitment to cultural humility.  We are looking for individuals who like to be challenged to grow both personally and professionally and value the opportunity to make a difference in their community.  Children's Law Center's continued success depends on recruiting and retaining individuals who possess and exemplify these attributes. 

Program Description

Children’s Law Center (CLC) hosts a comprehensive, hands-on internship program. Law clerk and intern positions are available during spring, summer and fall semesters. Law clerk applicants must be current law students or recent law school graduates. All positions are unpaid and can be taken for credit. Hours are flexible. Generally, spring openings are posted in October, summer positions are posted in November and fall openings are posted in May.

Special Legal Projects is expanding the organization's legal tools to include other forms of innovative healthy housing advocacy and collaborations, impact litigation and new approaches to working toward a future where every child can grow up with a strong foundation of family, health and education and live in a world free from poverty, trauma, racism and other forms of oppression. Special Legal Projects includes a team working on systemic change through impact litigation and partnerships as well as a Brief Service team working to provide client-centered, timely, fair, respectful and compassionate intakes to all community members.

Position Summary

The Brief Service Law Clerk will work closely with the Brief Service team to speak with the many community members who are referred to Children's Law Center. The Law Clerk will conduct intakes and help to provide brief services to community members, helping them with a range of legal issues, especially education and housing conditions. This is a great role for a law student who wants to have experience speaking directly with community members and helping to resolve meaningful problems. Law clerks should be available at least 15 hours. This role can be remote, hybrid or in-person.

Application Instructions

Children's Law Center is seeking candidates for the 2026 summer term. This position is available to candidates as a hybrid role, which has some expectation of work in-person at Children's Law Center's office in Washington, DC. The deadline to apply is January 30th, 2026.

To apply, please submit a resume and 3 professional references as one PDF file via CLC's website: https://childrenslawcenter.org/get-involved/careers/law-clerks-and-interns/.  
 

Children’s Law Center is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment. If you believe that you need accommodation to search for, or apply for, one of our positions please send an email to Jobs@ChildrensLawCenter.org. In your email, please include the accommodation you are requesting and the job title you are applying for. It may take up to three business days to receive a response to your request.

Hybrid Working Conditions

Children’s Law Center is currently operating on a hybrid work schedule.  Employees are required to work in-person from Children’s Law Center’s office a minimum of two days per week.  At least one of these days must be either Tuesday or Wednesday.  The hybrid work schedule is subject to change based on organizational needs and/or best practices for health and safety.  Hybrid work expectations may vary depending upon role responsibilities.

Background Checks

Candidates who receive a conditional offer of employment will be subject to a background check.

EEO

Children’s Law Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunities for all applicants and existing employees.   We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to ancestry, age, color, disability, genetic information, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, military or veteran status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and any other basis protected by federal, state, or local law, ordinance, or regulation. We invite you to visit us here to learn more about our company and our career opportunities (https://childrenslawcenter.org/get-involved/careers/).

Our Commitment

Children’s Law Center is dedicated to building a world that is inclusive in approach and has equal opportunities and equitable outcomes for all. Our organization is committed to developing and supporting a robustly diverse, equitable, inclusive and anti-racist community, where all members can create and feel a sense of belonging. Through our collective deliberate efforts, we work toward racial and social justice for children and families in DC.