Externship Program Opportunities

Description: Prerequisites: Complete or concurrent enrollment in both Secrued Transactions and Debtor-Creditor Relations.

Description: EXTERNSHIP AT DRC Before beginning their externship at DRC, the extern will receive an orientation to the office and work from the Extern Program Coordinator and Litigation Director. The orientation will include office procedure and personnel; set a work schedule and introductions to individuals the extern may need to know to do their job. The Extern Program Coordinator/Litigation Director will stress to the extern ethics and confidentiality in the work to be performed. The type of work assigned to the extern will be substantive and appropriate for the type of externship. Externs will be an active team member of DRC, and will conduct legal research, witness interviews, help attorneys prepare for trial, attend court with attorneys, or other tasks appropriate to the extern’s academic program. The Extern Program Coordinator/Litigation Director will regularly review the extern’s work assignments to ensure the extern’s work has a substantive emphasis. The Extern Program Coordinator/Litigation Director will complete all documentation so that academic institution course credit requirements are fulfilled as appropriate. The type of legal work at DRC is varied. Externs will have the opportunity to participate in the following experiences during their semester at DRC: • Monitoring of State Facilities • Client Contact & Interviewing Skills • Conduct Intake Requests for Assistance • Research and Writing • Ethics Training • Participate in Weekly Case Review • Depending on the nature of the legal work over a semester, externs may have the additional opportunity to participate in depositions, pre-trial motions, trials, due process hearings, administrative hearings, IEP meetings, mediations, etc. If a law student extern and the courtroom activities of the law student extern meet the qualifications of Kansas Supreme Court Rule 709, the extern may appear as counsel in court. If the requirements of Kansas Supreme Court Rule 709 are not met, law student externs are not authorized to appear as counsel and the law student extern may not make any independent decisions in processing a case. DRC requires all externs to obtain a temporary license pursuant to Kansas Supreme Court Rule 709.

Description: An extern working with the assistant district attorney responsible for the child in need of care docket would be exposed to and assist in a full range of activities related to initiating and prosecuting child in need of care cases including but not limited to the following: Review and assess applications for a petition submitted by SRS for legal sufficiency and, as appropriate, recommend the applicant collect additional facts or prepare a petition. Appear at hearings for temporary custody, adjudication, disposition, permanency, review of disposition, violation of valid court order, and etc. Observe Citizen Review Board proceedings and respond to questions or provide input as appropriate. Conduct truancy diversion review hearings. Determine the type and content of and compose the legal documents necessary for prosecuting a child in need of care case at different stages of progression such as petitions, ex parte protective custody orders, temporary custody orders, journal entries of adjudication and disposition, restraining orders, notices of hearings, ICWA notices, summons, subpoenas, no run warnings, permanency motions, and etc. Meet with case managers and services providers. Attend case plan conferences. An extern working with the assistant district attorney responsible for the juvenile offender docket would be exposed to and assist in a full range of activities related to initiating and prosecuting juvenile offender cases including but not limited to the following: Review and assess police reports for legal sufficiency and, as appropriate, recommend the further investigation to collect additional facts or prepare a complaint. Appear at hearings for detention, first appearance, trial or pleas, sentencing, revocation, permanency, and etc. Observe Citizen Review Board proceedings and respond to questions or provide input as appropriate. Determine the type and content of and compose the legal documents necessary for prosecuting a juvenile offender at different stages of progression such as pre-filing diversions, complaints, post-filing diversions, summonses, warrants, motions to revoke, commitment orders, subpoenas, permanency motions, and etc. Meet with law enforcement, court services and youth services officers. Attend case plan conferences.

Description: Prerequisite: Completion or concurrent enrollment in Environmental Law.

Description: This placement involves working in the legal department, including assisting with research on code of conduct investigations.

Description: Duties include substantive research and writing, as well as opportunities to sit in the courtroom for oral arguments and trials as may be needed. Judge Vano requests applications from students in the top 20 percent of the class.

Description: The Kansas Association of School Boards is a not-for-profit organization that serves as the common voice for Kansas boards of education. KASB members are governing boards for unified school districts, community colleges, area vocational-technical schools and cooperatives, interlocals and regional service centers. KASB offers opportunities to work with General Counsel to research statutes and legislation and potentially write articles for various KASB publications.

Description: Seeking 2nd or 3rd year student to work in Government Affairs. Duties include research and policy analysis, visits to the Capitol and working with lobbyists. This position is available during the fall and spring semesters only.

Description: Please contact Dean Anders for additional information about this opportunity.

Description: Please contact Dean Anders for additional information about this opportunity.

Description: KDHE is comprised of the divisions of Environment and Health. Environment regulates landfills, water quality, hazardous waste, air, radiation, soil contamination and environmentally damaging leaks, discharges and spills. Health regulates childcare facilities (home and institutional) and food services, and promotes state health-related issues. The KDHE legal staff seeks externs who are interested in one or the other of these areas. The environmental extern will assist attorneys in researching technical questions, preparing documents and witnesses for hearings, drafting pleadings and appellate briefs, drafting and organizing discovery and other tasks related to researching environmental issues and handling administrative appeals. The health extern will assist attorneys in analyzing and researching legislative bills, preparing for hearings, researching public health issues, drafting Administrative Orders, and, if the extern has his/her temporary law license, prosecuting administrative hearings. KDHE’s legal staff is interested in provided a varied and instructive experience for the successful applicants.

Description: Kansas Legal Services, a statewide non-profit organization, is dedicated to helping low income Kansans meet their basic needs through the provision of essential legal, mediation and employment training services. This opportunity is available in the Kansas City, KS, office and involves various aspects of family law. To apply please e-mail a cover letter and resume to Steve Henry at henrys@klsinc.org.

Description: Kansas Legal Services, a statewide non-profit organization, is dedicated to helping low income Kansans meet their basic needs through the provision of essential legal, mediation and employment training services. This opportunity is available in the Topeka, KS, office and involves various aspects of civil and criminal law.

Description: The Kansas Soybean Association is a membership organization that lobbies for legislation to create and maintain a favorable atmosphere for soybean farmer profitability in Kansas. This spring externship will last from January to late April 2008. Office space will be provided as needed at 2930 SW Wanamaker Drive in Topeka. During the 2008 Kansas state legislative session, the extern will be asked to monitor legislative activities of the state senate and house at the capitol, through printed materials and on-line. Tasks will include monitoring the issues that effect soybean farmers and soybean products including legislation related to soybeans, agriculture in general and fuels as well as certain environmental issues of concern.

Description: Please contact Dean Anders for additional information about this opportunity.

Description: The Leavenworth County Attorney's office has just expressed an interest in having an extern placed in their office. The extern would need to be available to make court appearances on Wednesday mornings from 8:30 a.m. until noon handling matters in the areas of misdemeanor traffic docket, juvenile cases, and possibly some fraud or bad check cases. The tasks consist of bench trials, research, writing briefs, and contact with other attorneys and clients.

Description: The Lyon County Counselor’s office has just expressed an interest in having an extern placed in their office. The position will include exposure to care and treatment cases under Chapter 59, contracts, Chapter 61 limited actions, and general legal research in a variety of legal fields. The successful applicant must be of above-average competence in researching, possess good writing skills, be punctual and be willing to work hard for real-world experience.

Description: Qualified law students to assist in providing legal counsel to offies that serve organizations of the Executive Office of the President of the United States.

Description: Duties include bill and policy analysis, attending committee hearings, and responding to constitutent requests.

Description: Please contact Dean Anders for additional information about this opportunity.

Description: Please contact Dean Anders for additional information about this opportunity.

Description: This placement involves working with the legal department of the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services.

Description: This externship offers students the opportunity to work directly on actual innocence cases. Students will be responsible for records gathering, investigation, and litigation of their cases. This will offer students an insider's look into the operation of the criminal justice system. This should be of interest to any student interested in working in a prosecutor's office, public defender's office or for a firm doing defense work. It is designed to help students gain insights into features of the criminal justice system that have a tendency to produce wrongful convictions. Students will be full-time on staff at the Midwestern Innocence Project working on cases of possible actual innocence. Requires a minimum of 200 hours of work over the summer and results in completion of four hours of Externship credit. Requires 1-3 days of work in the offices of the MIP (negotiable). Other work hours can be completed off-site.

Description: Tyr Energy provides comprehensive management services to financial owners of energy assets. The company specializes in asset management, risk management, and capacity management. Tyr is among the first companies in the energy industry to undertake third party projects for merchant power plants and natural gas pipelines and storage facilities. This position would involve working with the legal department.