Social Justice Initiatives | Columbia Law School

Social Justice Initiatives

Forms & Guidelines

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Guidelines

Forms

What Counts for Credit?

These tips are governed by the formal Guidelines for Pro Bono at Columbia Law School. We encourage all students to review the complete Guidelines.

To qualify for credit, pro bono projects must be:

1. Law-related. The project requires knowledge of the law for completion.

2. Supervised by an attorney (either directly or indirectly). The supervisor will sign off on the final work product (and/or a Student Initiated Petition, if applicable).

3. In the public interest. Public interest work includes legal services to those without the financial resources to pay counsel or aimed at securing or protecting civil rights, civil liberties, or public rights, improving the legal profession, the judicial system, or the public's understanding of public interest law. See below for more specific projects.

4. Uncompensated. Students may not receive any form of financial remuneration (salary, stipend, or grant) or academic credit (writing or other) for their work.

Established Pro Bono Placements (those which do not need a Student-Initiated Petition) include:

  • Columbia Law School’s In-House Pro Bono Projects, including student-run and firm collaborations. Descriptions of individual projects and contact information can be found on this document.
  • Additional, uncompensated weeks worked at a Guaranteed Summer Funding or Human Rights Internship Program summer placement.
  • Uncompensated, law-related work at legal services, legal aid, or advocacy 501(c)(3) organizations, or public defender offices (such as American Civil Liberties Union, Legal Aid Society, New York Legal Assistance Group, Legal Services NYC, Bronx Defenders, AALDEF, etc.)
  • Uncompensated, law-related work at government agencies and offices (at the local, state, or national level, such as District Attorney’s offices, U.S. Department of Justice, New York City Council, etc.)
  • Judicial Clerkships that are unpaid and not used as the basis of academic credit. For inquiries related to Clerkships that are a part of Columbia’s Judicial Externship, see externship requirements below
  • Spring Break Caravans, sponsored by SJI and led by student groups and individuals. For more information on Caravans, visit our Caravans page.

Placements that may qualify for pro bono credit with the pre-approval of a Student-Initiated Petition include:

  • A law firm’s pro bono, public interest work, for which the firm is not compensated and during a week in which the student is not being paid for his/her work
  • Columbia Law School clinics, during a semester in which the student is not enrolled in the clinic
  • Columbia Law School externship placements (including the Judicial Externship), during a semester in which the student is not enrolled in the externship and/or during weeks beyond the time that a student is required to work for academic credit
  • Nonprofit [501(c)(3)] organization whose primary purpose may not be legal, as long as the work itself is law-related and supervised by an attorney

Please note that this outline is neither exhaustive nor all-inclusive. If you have a potential pro bono project but you are unsure whether or not it will qualify for pro bono credit, please contact Lisa Kim.

Forms

In order to claim pro bono credit, students must complete and submit at least two forms for each placement:

  1. An Exit Questionnaire, to be completed by the student, and
  2. A Supervisor’s Report, to be completed by the supervising attorney.
  3. Some projects also may require a student to complete a Student-Initiated Petition prior to beginning the work.

Student-Initiated Petition

This form is required for pro bono work completed at non-established placements (see the guidelines above for more information regarding projects that require a Student Initiated Petition).

Exit Questionnaire

All pro bono credit, whether mandatory or voluntary, requires the completion of an Exit Questionnaire by the individual who performed the work.

Supervisor's Report

All pro bono credit, whether mandatory or voluntary, requires the completion of a supervisor’s report.

If a supervisor’s report is being submitted for the work of a group of students, supervisors should attach a list of all participating students, and should indicate the number of hours that each student worked.

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