Clinical Instructional Fellow, Cyberlaw Clinic

The Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University
Published
June 6, 2017
Location
Cambridge, MA
Category
Job Type

Description

The Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University seeks a Clinical Instructional Fellow to join our Cyberlaw Clinic team.

The Clinical Instructional Fellow’s (Fellow’s) primary responsibility will be to assist the Clinic’s staff attorneys in mentoring students as they represent clients in connection with a variety of challenging cases and matters, including on issues relating to speech, privacy, and intellectual property.  It is hoped that the Fellow will play a particular role in expanding the Clinic’s practice with respect to civic innovation and government technology issues.

The substance of the Fellow’s work will vary from case to case but may include overseeing students in their counseling of clients; preparation of amicus briefs, comments and other filings; drafting of contracts, licenses and other transactional documents; and support for policy advocacy efforts. The Fellow may work with startups, public interest organizations, government institutions, and individual clients.  

The Fellow, under the close supervision of the Clinic’s Managing Director and Clinical Instructors, will meet regularly with students to prepare and strategize in connection with the students’ casework; observe students in client interactions; review students’ written and other work product; provide regular and detailed feedback to students on their projects and performance; deliver instruction in basic legal skills and technology-related practice; and ensure professional, high-quality representation of Clinic clients.

The Fellow will also help develop new Cyberlaw Clinic cases and clients consistent with the Fellow’s own areas of interest and expertise and will help the Clinic to maintain relationships with existing clients and external partners.   The Fellow will assist the Managing Director and Clinical Instructors in managing the Clinic’s practice and operation.

The Fellow will be part of the intellectual community at the Berkman Center and will have the opportunity to attend workshops and conferences at the Center and Harvard Law School.  The Fellow will have the opportunity to engage with and participate in the Fellows community at the Center and will be permitted to spend a limited amount of time to pursue his or her own research and scholarship.  The community of fellows at the Center includes wide range of people working on issues related to Internet and society, including scholars, attorneys, entrepreneurs, and others committed to understanding and advancing the public interest.  The Berkman Center fellowship program aims to encourage and support fellows in an inviting and rigorous intellectual environment, with community activities designed to foster inquiry and collaboration.

The position reports to the Assistant Director of the Harvard Law School Cyberlaw Clinic, based at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society.

Candidates must have received their Juris Doctor degree within the past 3 years and be admitted to the Massachusetts bar.  One to three years legal-practice experience with significant internet/technology and/or relevant intellectual property law background is required.

Candidates should be energetic and passionate about working on a variety of technology law and policy issues. Top academic credentials, superior writing and verbal skills, sound judgment, exceptional ethical standards, and proven abilities in interpersonal communication, supervision, and team building are a must.

Expertise in the areas of online transactional/licensing law, counseling of startups, civic innovation and tech policy, and legal risk assessment and advising is preferred.  Previous experience in a clinical legal setting or with the direct supervision and mentoring of attorneys is also desirable.

The following materials should be submitted with your online application:     

* A short statement (no more than 1000 words) describing relevant experience;

* Resume;

* Writing sample (10 – 15 pages preferred);

* List of at least three references; and

* Law school transcript

What is the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society?

The Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University is dedicated to exploring, understanding, and shaping the development of the digitally-networked environment. A diverse, interdisciplinary community of scholars, practitioners, technologists, policy experts, and advocates, we seek to tackle the most important challenges of the digital age while keeping a focus on tangible real-world impact in the public interest. Our faculty, fellows, staff and affiliates conduct research, build tools and platforms, educate others, form bridges and facilitate dialogue across and among diverse communities. More information at www.cyber.law.harvard.edu.

What does the Cyberlaw Clinic do?

The rapid expansion of the Internet during the 1990s and the increasing ability of individuals and organizations to locate and retrieve content online had two important and related effects relevant to the law school clinical model. First, it allowed a wide range of users to obtain and share information at an extraordinary rate. Second, it posed enormous challenges to existing legal regimes in areas such as intellectual property, speech, and privacy. Whereas some could afford to pay for high-quality legal services in the emerging area of “cyberlaw,” the need for free or low-cost legal service organizations to meet the needs of individuals, academics, startups, and others was apparent. At the same time, students graduating from law schools in the late-1990s and early-2000s were increasingly expected by their employers, clients, and others, to come to the workforce prepared to grapple with complex questions relevant to organizations, businesses, and individuals that operate in an online world. The importance of legal issues relevant to the Internet was clear even in areas of practice with no apparent connection to the web, as questions about the intersection technology and law (including laws relating to contracts, intellectual property, jurisdiction, privacy, and speech) impacted virtually everyone.

The Cyberlaw Clinic was born of the need to serve these two constituencies -- prospective clients and students -- and a central aim of the Clinic remains balancing the provision of top-notch legal services to Clinic clients with teaching and pedagogy geared toward students. The Clinic offers HLS students a unique opportunity to engage directly with the practice of law as it relates to the Internet, technology, and new media. It does so by providing high-quality, pro-bono legal services to appropriate individuals, small start-ups, non-profit groups, and government entities regarding cutting-edge issues of the Internet, new technology, and intellectual property. Consistent with the needs of its clients and the interests of its students, the Clinic's practice covers a wide variety of types of work and a broad range of substantive areas of the law.

More information can be found at http://cyberlawclinic.berkman.harvard.edu.

Commitment to Diversity

The work and well-being of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University are strengthened profoundly by the diversity of our network and our differences in background, culture, experience, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, and much more. We actively seek and welcome applications from people of color, women, the LGBTQIA community, and persons with disabilities.   

This is a term appointment currently expected to extend to June 30, 2018, subject to funding and departmental need.

All offers to be made by HLS Human Resources.

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