The BC Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) has openings for legal placement opportunities for the summer of 2024. Students will have the opportunity to gain valuable experience by working alongside staff lawyers and legal directors assisting in aspects of litigation, policy advocacy and communications campaigns.

The BCCLA is one of Canada’s leading organizations advocating for the protection and advancement of civil liberties and human rights. The BCCLA has been actively advancing human rights and civil liberties through litigation, law reform, community-based legal advocacy, and public engagement and education for the last half century.

Funding

The BC Civil Liberties Association has historically hired law students over the summer term, with placements made possible through federal funding or funding provided by law foundations in partnership with law schools across the province. When such funding is exhausted or unavailable, we welcome students who have secured individual funding through their universities.

Recognizing how beneficial summer student placements are both for our organization and for law students, we are opening a call for law students to apply to collaborate with us this summer if they have secured external funding. While many students offer to summer at the BCCLA without compensation to “gain experience,” we oppose the illegal practice of unpaid internships and believe in people being paid a living wage for their labour. For this reason, we ask that people only contact us if they can secure a certain amount of funding from a third party (usually their law school).

The BCCLA has Living Wage Certification in Vancouver. As different funders have different amounts to offer to students, the term of the placement for successful applicants will be based on the proportion of overall funding to the current living wage for Vancouver ($25.8/hour). We would like to make this a meaningful placement for aspiring lawyers; we welcome students who can make possible through their funding a placement of 8-10 weeks at 30 hours per week, with a tentative start date of July 2024. We estimate this requires $6,200-$7,740 in funding for the placement.

We realize that sometimes students need to be linked to specific deliverables to be eligible for funding. Please indicate if this is the case when sending us your materials. We have the capacity to place two students this summer.

Eligibility

• a student studying common law who has finished at least the first year of law school
• a demonstrated interest in civil liberties and human rights
• Funding must be confirmed prior to the start date of the placement and must be maintained throughout the duration of the placement
• Preference may be given to students located in Canada for the duration of the placement

What You Can Expect to Work On

Law students will be conducting case law and statutory legal research, reviewing legislation, drafting legal memoranda for litigation and law reform purposes, and helping in the preparation of public education materials that make the law more accessible and other projects as assigned. Placements at the BCCLA provide a valuable opportunity to be engaged in the work of social justice and public interest law, particularly in the areas of police accountability, criminal law, privacy rights, Indigenous rights, prisoners’ rights, democratic rights, and the novel and shifting legal landscape during the pandemic.

Application Process

Please send us a cover letter and resume to be considered for one of these two placements.

Please send your materials in PDF format to [email protected] by June 18, 2024. We may conduct brief interviews shortly thereafter and will notify all applicants of the outcomes.

BCCLA is an equal opportunity employer committed to building an inclusive and diverse workplace, and encourages applications from all qualified applicants. The BCCLA strongly encourages applications from all qualified candidates including Indigenous students, racialized students, 2SLGBTQIA+ students and students with disabilities. Students are encouraged to self-identify, should they feel comfortable doing so.

This position is based at our office in Vancouver at #306-268 Keefer St, on unceded Traditional Territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlil̓wətaʔɬ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil Waututh) nations. In light of COVID-19, the placement can be carried through partially remotely and partially in-person, in incompliance with WorkSafeBC guidelines for in-office work. This placement may also be performed fully remotely. Access to required platforms will be provided.