Attorney's Office Internship Program

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The City of San José is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants for all job openings will be considered without regard to age race color religion sex national origin sexual orientation disability veteran statusor any other consideration made unlawful under any federal state or local laws. The City of San José is committed to offering reasonable accommodations to job applicants with disabilities. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability please contact us at 711 (TTY) or via email at .

The City Attorneys Office is committed to providing excellent legal services to its clients and supporting their efforts to better serve the citizens of the City of San José. It has a diverse staff of highly talented professionals with the expertise to provide comprehensive legal services for a wide range of issues facing a dynamic city. The Office strives to efficiently manage resources to meet the daily operational needs of its clients in a cost-effective and timely manner while building the internal capacity to flexibly respond to the Citys ever changing legal needs.

Interns in the City Attorneys Office may receive assignments from both the Litigation and Transactional Divisions providing exposure to a broad range of municipal legal work. This cross-divisional experience allows interns to develop a well-rounded understanding of public agency legal practice.

Assignments will be based on office needs intern interests and background. Descriptions can be found in the Division pages of the City Attorneys Office website.

Litigation Division
Interns assist attorneys with various stages of litigation Typical assignments may include:

• Conducting legal research and drafting memoranda
• Drafting pleadings motions and discovery responses
• Participating in litigation strategy meetings
• Attending mediations depositions arbitrations and trials
• Certified law students may also have the opportunity to appear in court or administrative hearings under attorney supervision.

Transactional Division
Interns assist attorneys serving as counsel to City departments. Typical assignments may include:

• Researching legal issues and drafting legal memoranda
• Drafting ordinances resolutions contracts and other legal instruments
• Analyzing pending state legislation
• Participating in meetings with City departments and Council agenda review sessions

Applicants must be currently enrolled in an accredited law school to be eligible for the City Attorneys Law Student Intern Program. Preference will be given to students entering their second or third year of law school; howeverqualified rising 2Ls will also be considered. Completion of coursework in Evidence Civil Procedure and Constitutional law is desirable.

Interns must be willing to work a minimum of 20 hours per week during the school term 40 hours per week for summer interns. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Work schedules are flexible based on the interns class schedule as well as the operational needs of the office. Once a schedule has been agreed upon interns are expected to maintain the schedule on a consistent basis.

The Summer Program will run from Tuesday May 26 through Friday August 7 2025. Requests for schedule exceptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

To apply please submit the following materials with your application:

• Cover letter
• Resume
• Writing sample
• Law School transcript (electronic copy)
• Completed supplemental questions

In your cover letter please indicate your interest in a litigation transactional or combined internship placement.

Additional Information:

Employment Eligibility: Federal law requires all employees to provide verification of their eligibility to work in this country. Please be informed that the City of San Jose will NOT sponsor represent or sign any documents related to visa applications/transfers for H1-B or any other type of visa which requires an employer application.

You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this vacancy or your application will be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses.

Please note that applications are currently not acceptedthrough CalOpps or any other third party job board application system.

This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.

Please allow adequate time to complete the application and submit before the deadline or the system may not save your application. If your online application was successfully submitted you will receive an automatic confirmation email to the email address you provided. IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE THE CONFIRMATION please email and we will research the status of your application.

AI and the Hiring Process

We recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming part of daily life and can be avaluable tool for learning research and professional growth. We encouragecandidates to use AI responsibly as a support in preparing application materials liveassessments and interviews. Howeverwe value authenticity accuracy and truthfulness.Application responses and interview answers must reflect your ownknowledge skills and experiences. While AI can supplement preparation it cannotreplace the originality and judgment we look for in our employees. This ensuresfairnesstransparency and equityfor all applicants in the hiring process.