The First Judicial District Public Defender’s Office in Hastings is looking for a few law students to help clients with their appearances on our Zoom/remote calendars. Students need to be eligible for certification under the Minnesota supervised student practitioner rules so they can appear in Zoom court and help clients with their pending cases, but they can be in the traditional or hybrid program. Student attorneys will interview clients, negotiate with prosecutors and probation officers, review case files for legal and factual challenges, and make arguments on the record.
Assignments will depend on the student availability. The Zoom calendars are morning (9am until noon central time) and afternoon (1:30pm to 4pm central time) every Tuesday and every other Wednesday and Thursday. We are looking for students now and ongoing into the spring semester. We would like students to be available to be in court at least one day a week. We provide excellent training, mentoring, and supervision for our student attorneys with a focus on getting them as much practical, hands-on experience as we can. These positions can be for work study, class credit, or volunteer.
Contact managing attorney Shawn Webb at shawn.webb@pubdef.state.mn.us or at 651-346-1513.