Office of the Public Defender

Become a Legal Intern

The office's Legal Intern Program is open to rising 2L and 3L students. Program supervisors assign legal interns two attorneys who serve as mentors: one from the Trial Division and one from the Appellate Division. Interns shadow the trial mentor at court hearings, depositions, and jail visits. Program supervisors and mentors assign the interns research projects and motions to write. Appellate mentors review their legal interns' research and writing assignments, providing feedback before interns submit their work for final review.

Legal interns attend a writing workshop geared toward improving their motion-writing skills and various monthly CLE presentations with the office's attorneys. Each week, they have a group check-in with two senior Assistant Public Defenders to discuss their experiences and be given new assignments.

To Apply

Applicants should upload a resume, a writing sample no more than 10 pages in length, a cover letter and a draft transcript to: Legal intern applicant. Those identified as prospective matches will be contacted regarding interviews.

Testimonials

"During my internship at the Palm Beach County Public Defender's Office, I was able to work on actual legal matters and vastly improve my research and writing skills. I learned a lot about the justice system, criminal defense, and how to put the theoretical skills I have learned during law school into actual practice. I experienced various stages of the criminal defense process including depositions, client meetings, and motion hearings with a mentor. I also worked with an appellate mentor who reviewed the motions I wrote and provided writing advice. Overall, I think the internship program provided an in-depth look at public defense work and how important it is to the community, as well as the impact it can have on people's lives."
  —Julie Finston, J.D., Univesity of Florida, Levin School of Law

"Interning with the Office of the Public Defender for the 15^th Judicial Circuit was like an intensive course in criminal legal practice. As a Legal Intern, my experiences with the office, staff, and the courts gave me an in depth look at nearly every aspect of practicing in South Florida and criminal law in general. I spent hours in courtrooms simply observing administration and procedure, which helped me develop an invaluable foundation on which to build my career. Getting to see the "behind-the-scenes" as well as the representation to the court helps interns learn how to speak a client's interests using the court's language, while also ensuring that the client's perspective and interests are entered into the record.

Each intern in our intern cohort had one designated Attorney Mentor and one Appellate Mentor. I witnessed how Assistant Public Defenders make sure that there was always someone on the record invoking the Constitution's prescriptions for equal treatment under the law. We drafted motions for attorneys working on different types of cases for both felony and misdemeanor cases. Within a week of starting the internship, I drafted sections of a motion to dismiss, which led to felony charges being dropped and a more favorable plea offer. It was an awesome experience to be a part of the substantial and positive work the the work.

Overall, the staff are all incredibly knowledgeable of both the law and the day-to-day interstices of practicing in South Florida. They all respect one another's work and contributions to the office and its culture. The Public Defender herself maintained a caseload, was a strong advocate for staff at all levels, and was respected by defense attorneys and prosecutors alike.

When I returned to school the next semester, I was surprised by how far ahead of my classmates I was with my understanding of trial practice. Before classmates in my Trial Practice class had a solid idea of which pieces of evidence in an artificial case packet supported or detracted from certain elements of charge, I was already developing a theme and theory of the case."
  —David Karpay, J.D., University of Maryland School of Law