Fellowships

The Economic Justice Fellowship is awarded annually to an incoming first year student at the University of Maine School of Law who demonstrates academic excellence, a commitment to work in the public interest, and a keen interest in economic justice and community development.  The Economic Justice Fellow will work closely with faculty in curricular and career planning, research, and placement in field opportunities with organizations engaged in affordable housing, community economic development, or development finance. Fellows are granted a stipend for a full-time summer internship with such institutions and may also arrange for part-time placements for credit during the academic year. The faculty coordinator for the Economic Justice Fellowship is Professor Peter Pitegoff, former Dean of Maine Law and an expert in community-based economic development.

The Immigration Law Fellowship is awarded annually to an incoming first year student at the University of Maine School of Law who has demonstrated both academic excellence and a commitment to immigration issues. The Immigration Law Fellow will be invited to policy meetings, be assured placement in Maine Law’s Refugee and Human Rights Clinic for a semester in the 2nd or 3rd year of law school, receive academic advising by Clinical Professor Anna Welch who oversees the Refugee & Human Rights Clinic as well as guaranteed independent writing supervision on topics relating to immigration issues by Clinical Professor Welch.

The McKusick Diversity Fellowship provides tuition and other support to students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, with a goal of increasing the diversity of the student body at the University of Maine School of Law and in Maine’s legal community. It honors the late Vincent L. McKusick (1921-2014), former Chief Justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. The lead gifts for the McKusick Diversity Fellowship Fund came from the law firm of Pierce Atwood LLP and Dr. Victor McKusick, the Chief’s twin brother. Numerous colleagues and admirers helped to build this endowment. McKusick Fellows receive an honors scholarship for all three years at Maine Law, have an opportunity for a paid internship at Pierce Atwood, and join a stellar community of current and past McKusick Fellows.

The Susan Calkins Public Interest Fellowship is named for retired Maine Supreme Judicial Court Justice Susan Calkins. The Susan Calkins Public Interest Fellowship is awarded annually to an incoming first year student at the University of Maine School of Law who demonstrates both academic excellence and a commitment to the pursuit of work in the public interest. The Calkins Fellow will be granted a summer public interest fellowship during their first summer, academic advising by the Director of the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic (CLAC), a 3 or 6 credit seat in one of the CLAC clinics (provided all pre-requisites are satisfied), invitations to public interest policy meetings, and access to loan repayment funds for qualifying post-graduate employment.

Justice Calkins is an alumna of the University of Maine School of Law. She was formerly the Executive Director of Pine Tree Legal Assistance in Portland, Maine and a staff attorney there for over ten years. She was appointed to the Maine District Court in 1980, and she was later named the first Chief Judge of that court. She served briefly on the Maine Superior Court, and in 1998 she was appointed by Governor King to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, where she served until 2007. A former clerk noted that Justice Calkins was “both the model of the kind of lawyer that I hoped to be – one who tries to use the law to make people’s lives better – and the kind of judge that I hoped would hear my client’s cases – careful, thoughtful, and conscious of the real-world impact of legal interpretation.” Justice Calkins exemplifies a commitment to work in the public interest.

The Bernstein District Court Fellows Program gives first-year and second-year students at the Law School an opportunity to spend the summer working as clerks for participating Maine State District Court judges and occasionally on special projects for the court system. Up to four full-time or eight part-time fellowships (depending on the availability of funds) are awarded each year on the basis of academic performance, financial need, and demonstrated professionalism. Bernstein Fellows each receive a stipend of $5,000.

The Harvey Fellowship is named in honor and memory of the late “Chuck” Harvey, a preeminent Portland trial lawyer who graduated from Maine Law. It provides an intensive trial practice experience to a student during the summer following his/her second year at the Law School. The student selected for the fellowship works alongside experienced and skilled trial lawyers preparing for and conducting jury and bench trials of civil and criminal cases. Students ordinarily apply for the fellowship following their first-year. A committee of lawyers, judges, and law faculty select one Fellow each year, based on demonstrated interest, aptitude, and potential in becoming a trial lawyer. The Fellow’s summer schedule is managed by the Fellowship Coordinator (an experienced trial lawyer selected by the committee on a rotating basis). The fellowship comes with a stipend of $4,000.

The Horace Libby Fund was established in honor of Horace S. Libby, who served as Chief Counsel to the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for fourteen years. The Fund supports a student summer internship at the PUC. Interested first-year and second-year students apply for a summer internship position with the PUC through the Spring On-Campus Interview Program, and the fellowship is available to the student who is chosen by the PUC, subject to academic performance, financial need, and demonstrated professionalism. The stipend is $3,000.

The Law School’s Legislative Fellowship Program gives first-year and second-year students an opportunity to serve as summer interns with the legislative branch of Maine’s state government. The fellowships are funded by contributions from the Law Alumni Association and other organizations and donors. One or two part-time fellowships are awarded, and each carries a stipend of $2,500 for 150 hours of work during the summer months. Interested students usually contact one of the state legislative leadership offices and arrange to do an unpaid summer internship as the basis for the fellowship application. It is expected that work done by Legislative Fellows will be of a generally non-partisan nature.

The Law School’s MAPIL (Maine Association for Public Interest Law) Fellowship Program enables a small number of first-year and second-year students to serve as summer interns with various public interest organizations and agencies that would otherwise be unable to afford the interns’ services. The stipend is $5,000 for  300 hours of work over an 8-10 week period during the summer months (full-time) or $2,500 for 150 hours over the same period (part-time). The number of fellowships awarded depends on the availability of funding. These fellowships are funded by MAPIL and the Law School community’s support at the spring MAPIL auction, as well as by contributions from the Law Alumni Association and other organizations and donors. The number of Fellowships awarded each year depends on the level of funding and the quality of the applications. The fellowships are available for summer internships at: (1) nonprofit organizations that provide direct legal services to indigent individuals; (2) other nonprofit organizations, including social service agencies, civil rights organizations, environmental groups, consumer organizations, and the like that provide direct legal assistance and expertise to traditionally unrepresented or under-represented persons and interests; and (3) governmental agencies in connection with projects that provide direct legal services to individual members of the public who are disadvantaged. Host organizations can be located in Maine or elsewhere (including abroad), and students are encouraged to expand their exploration of internship opportunities beyond the Portland metropolitan area.

The Rural Law Fellowship pairs students with rural lawyers who serve as mentors, and provides students with direct exposure to rural practice to inspire them to consider pursuing careers in these communities. It is the result of a collaboration between the Law School, the Maine Justice Foundation, the Maine State Bar Association, and the Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar. The three-year pilot funding for these fellowships was provided by the Maine Justice Foundation. The funding to continue the program for the next three years is being provided through a grant from the Betterment Fund.

Beginning in the summer of 2017, Maine Law received funding from the Maine Justice Foundation to place two rising 2L students with rural practitioners. Students selected for the fellowship work in the summers under the guidance of practitioners on legal research and drafting, dispute resolution, general practice case management, real estate transactions, trial practice, and ethics. Fellows are also encouraged to perform volunteer work for legal aid providers in the area where they are serving as fellows.

The Student Services Fellowship, a paid position for a 2L or 3L student, requires a commitment of 8 hours per week during the academic year. It is a one-year appointment with the possibility of renewal for a second year.

The Fellow assists with several duties, including working with the SBA and other student organizations, organizing events sponsored by the Office of Student Services, helping with the planning and implementation of Orientation, assisting LL.M. and exchange program students, and providing general support to the Office. The overall focus of the position is the Office’s work in student life.