APPLICATION OPENING DATE:           SEPTEMBER 15, 2021
APPLICATION CLOSING DATE:           OCTOBER 31, 2021
COMPENSATION FOR INTERNSHIP:   GS-09
 
HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION: 
Email your application to:  osd.summerhonorslegalinterns@mail.mil .  Your application must include all items listed below to be considered complete; incomplete applications will not be considered.
 
APPLICATION DEADLINE:  October 31, 2021
 
QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:  A Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university.  Interns must have completed their second year of law school prior to the commencement of the 2022 summer intern period.  You should name each of your files with your last name, first name, and document name (e.g., Smith, John Cover Letter; Smith, John Resume).
 
REQUIRED APPLICATION MATERIALS:
1.  Cover Letter.  Indicate why you would like to serve as an intern at OGC.  The cover letter must be submitted as a separate attachment to your application e-mail; and not as text in the body of the e-mail.  The cover letter should also include your current telephone number and e-mail address.  The cover letter should provide more detailed information on your interest in the program (list the OGC sub-offices offices you would prefer).  Please note, there is no guarantee you will be placed in your preferred sub-office within OGC.
 
2.  Resume.  Be sure to include relevant experience such as any prior experience with DoD or another Federal agency, or legal experience.  Also, include volunteer experience and extracurricular activities.
 
3.  Writing Sample.  A writing sample is required.  A legal memorandum or a legal brief is preferred.
 
4.  Undergraduate Transcripts.  An unofficial transcript may be submitted as part of the initial applications, but an official transcript or equivalent document will be required before a final offer is made.
 
5.  Letter of Proof of Current Law School Enrollment.  Statement from the institution's registrar, dean, or other appropriate official stating that you are a current law student.
 
6.  Law School Transcripts.  An unofficial transcript may be submitted as part of the initial application, but an official transcript or equivalent document will be required before a final offer is made.  In addition, if the transcript does not contain grade point average (GPA) or class rank, applicants should provide a separate statement of law school class rank, GPA or an equivalent measure of academic placement from the law school, or a statement from the law school that no such measures are in place.
 
ADDITIONAL APPLICATION MATERIALS (if applicable):
1.  Graduate Transcripts.  If your resume mentions graduate school (other than your current law school), please include an unofficial copy of the transcript from that school.
 
2.  Documentation of Veteran Status.  Selectees with prior military service are required to submit photocopies of their DD 214(s), Certificate(s) of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, covering all periods of military service.
 
3.  Relatives Employed by DoD.  Applicants who have relatives and/or family members employed by OSD or the Joint Staff must specify in their application materials the organizational entity or entities (e.g., Directorate, Office of an Under or Assistant Secretary of Defense, Staff Office or equivalent) in which these individuals are employed.
 
ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION:
The Department of Defense (DoD), with over 3 million military members and civilian employees, is one of the largest entities served by any group of attorneys in the world.  The DoD Office of the General Counsel (OGC) is part of the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD).  The DoD OGC is the highest level legal organization in DoD.  The DoD General Counsel is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, and serves as the Chief Legal Officer of DoD, the legal advisor to the Secretary of Defense, and the Director of the Defense Legal Services Agency (in which capacity he or she oversees the General Counsel Offices of over two dozen Defense Agencies and DoD Field Activities).  The Office is responsible for advising high-level policy makers in OSD.  In addition, the DoD OGC works closely with senior attorneys and policy makers from the military departments, and with officials from the Departments of Justice, State, Treasury, and other Government agencies.
 
The legal issues considered by the DoD OGC are broad.  While unique legal issues arise as a result of the national security and military missions of DoD, such as those involving international relations, military operations, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the DoD counternarcotics program, military education, industrial security, intelligence and counterintelligence policy, the DoD OGC also advises in all of the practice areas common to the practice of law by Federal government attorneys in any Federal agency to include constitutional law issues, procurement and acquisition law, fiscal law, environmental law, property law, administrative law, employment and labor law, information disclosure (the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act), government ethics, legislation, litigation support, and the review of investigations.  Perhaps surprising to those not familiar with DoD are the legal issues arising from practice areas that some may not immediately associate with DoD such as healthcare law (DoD runs its own hospital and health care system) and education law (DoD operates its own K-12 school system for military dependents, as well as undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate schools).
 
Interns will be assigned to specific offices within DoD OGC or DLSA, such as the Offices of the Deputy General Counsels for Energy, Environment and Installations; Fiscal; International Affairs; Intelligence; Legal Counsel; or Personnel & Health Policy; the Standards of Conduct Office; and other DLSA offices such as the Offices of General Counsel for Washington Headquarters Service.  There are few, if any, offices that can provide summer law clerks the diversity of practice areas and experiences that are available as an OSD Honors Legal Intern in DoD OGC.
 
DUTIES:
Summer interns in the OSD Honors Legal Internship Program are given considerable flexibility in their assignments.  At least one intern is assigned to each OGC office listed above.  There are substantial opportunities to enhance research and drafting skills by working in close association with members of OGC.  Interns will assist in drafting and commenting on legislation, regulations, congressional testimony, litigation materials, and legal opinions.  Interns will have the opportunity to assist in the process of formulating DoD legal policy on high-profile topics of current interest.  Our intern program may include visits to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Senate Armed Services Committee, military bases, Defense agencies and DoD field activities, and are all intended to familiarize the interns with the practice of law by Federal attorneys and the work of DoD in general.
 
AFTER YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION:
1.  All application materials become the property of this office and will not be returned.
 
2.  Selected law student applicants will be contacted telephonically or via e-mail by the end of March 2022.
 
3.  Consideration will be given to all qualified applicants in their second year of law school, without regard to political; religious; labor organization affiliation or non-affiliation; marital status; race; color; national origin; sex; age; non-disqualifying physical or mental disability; or any other non-merit factor.
 
CONDITIONS OF INTERNSHIP:
Applicants are advised that false answers or omissions of information on application and processing forms, or inability to meet the following conditions may be grounds for non-selection, withdrawal of an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed.  All statements on application forms are subject to investigation, including a check of fingerprints, police records and former employers.
 
Selection for this position is contingent upon proof of U.S. citizenship.  Acceptable proof of citizenship includes (a) United States passport or (b) original or certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a state, county, or municipal authority bearing a raised seal and a photo identification (e.g., driver’s license).  (Applicants must be able to obtain a security clearance, and to obtain a security clearance, they must be U.S. citizens.)
 
Positions require access to classified information and selectee will be subject to a background investigation, which must be completed prior to the candidate's official appointment date.  All selectees must be given favorable basic background adjudication.
 
Tentative selectees for this position will be required to submit to a urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment.  A candidate selected under this announcement will not be entitled to permanent change of station pay for travel expenses.
 
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY POLICY:
The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy And gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.
 
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION POLICY:
Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate.  Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly.  Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
 
A reasonable accommodation is any change in the workplace or the way things are customarily done that provides an equal employment opportunity to an individual with a disability.  Under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) must provide reasonable accommodations:
 

• When an applicant with a disability needs an accommodation to have an equal opportunity to compete For a job;
• When an employee with a disability needs an accommodation to perform the essential functions of the job or To gain access to the workplace; and
• When an employee with a disability needs an accommodation to enjoy equal access to benefits and privileges of employment (e.g., details, trainings, office-sponsored events).