I finished my first year of law school pretty unsure of what type of legal career I was interested in. I thought KU’s Judicial Clinic would fit well with my 1L skill set and provide exposure to a variety of legal careers. I accepted a federal clerkship in Wichita with Chief Judge J. Thomas Marten of the U.S. District Court …
My Summer Internship: Sorting out the ships worth saving at the Department of Labor
This summer, I have been working as an assistant investigator for the Employee Benefits Security Administration in the Department of Labor’s Kansas City office. My duties are to audit private employer health insurance and pension plans in order to ensure compliance with the Employee Retirement Insurance Security Act (ERISA). Does “audit” sound like fun? No. But does ERISA sound like …
Speaking and listening: Bill Walberg & Kasper Schirer, L’15
Before he enrolled in the Legal Aid Clinic, Bill Walberg described his communication skills as “lacking.” “I had a terrible fear of public speaking,” he said. “My first oral argument I panicked and could barely get my argument out. I wanted experience in an uncontrolled setting like the courtroom, and that’s what the Legal Aid Clinic provided for me.” Within …
My Summer Internship: Advancing LGBT rights on the front lines
I have spent three months of my 2015 summer working on Wall Street overlooking the East River in Manhattan. Before I took the flight out of KCI, I had to say that the entire idea was incredibly daunting. I had been to New York City before and found that it was not exactly my taste, but this was for a …
My Summer Internship: Learning military justice in the JAG Corps
This summer I was given the incredible opportunity to work as an extern with the U.S. Army Trial Defense Service (TDS) at Fort Leavenworth. Because of my Army background, I knew that I wanted to work with the Army Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps. The representative at the JAG recruiting office worked hard to get me placed at Fort Leavenworth …
My Summer Internship: Fighting for access to justice at LAWMO
This summer I was given the incredible opportunity to work for LAWMO (Legal Aid of Western Missouri). LAWMO is a legal services nonprofit that assists low-income individuals in the Kansas City metro area and beyond. One of the great things about interning at LAWMO is the exposure to a wide array of legal practices. LAWMO is organized by practice area …