Internship and Job Sites

Job and Internship Sites

Jobs and Internships

The Wiki Encyclopedia of Law has compiled links to international tribunals, intergovernmental organizations, government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations where students and recent law school graduates may find internships or employment.

International Tribunals

 

Commission for Environmental Cooperation
The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) is an international organization created by Canada, Mexico and the United States under the North American Free Trade Agreement on Environmental Cooperation. The CEC was established to address regional environmental concerns, help prevent potential trade and environmental conflicts, and promote the effective enforcement of environmental law.

 

Court of Justice & Court of First Instance of the European Communities
The Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance of the European Union have the task of ensuring that the law is observed in the interpretation and application of the Treaties constituting the European Communities and the provisions adopted by the competent Community institutions.

 

European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights aims to apply and to protect the civil and political rights of the continent’s citizens. These principles are set out in the European Convention on Human Rights, a landmark treaty that was drawn up in the aftermath of World War II.

 

European Free Trade Agreement Court
The European Free Trade Association Court is a supranational court covering the three European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members who are also members of the European Economic Area (EEA). At present EFTA States are Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The aim of the EEA Agreement is to guarantee the free movement of persons, goods, services and capital; to provide equal conditions of competition; and to abolish discrimination on grounds of nationality in all 30 EEA States — the 27 EU States and the three EFTA States.

 

Inter-American Court of Human Rights
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights was created by the Organization of American States (OAS) as an autonomous judicial institution charged to apply and interpret the American Convention on Human Rights, a treaty drafted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in 1967 and adopted by the OAS in 1969. The Court has adjudicatory and advisory jurisdiction.

 

International Chamber of Commerce International Court of Arbitration
The ICC International Court of Arbitration is a body which hears and resolves private disputes between parties. Its voluntary rule-writing for business spreads best practice in areas as varied as banking, marketing, anti-corruption and environmental management. Their policy-making and advocacy work keeps national governments, the United Nations system and other global bodies apprised of the views of the world business on some of the most pressing issues of the day.

 

International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. The Court has a dual role: to settle in accordance with international law the legal disputes submitted to it by nations and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized international organs and agencies.

 

International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is the first ever permanent, treaty based, international criminal court established to promote the rule of law and ensure that the gravest international crimes do not go unpunished.

 

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
The United Nations Security Council created the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in late 1994 to help contribute to the process of national reconciliation in Rwanda and to help maintain peace in the region. The ICTR prosecutes persons responsible for genocide and other serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in the territory of Rwanda during the 1994 calendar year.

 

International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
The United Nations Security Council created the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in 1993. The statute establishing the ICTY gives it the power to prosecute persons responsible for the serious violations of the international humanitarian law committed in the territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991, including breaches of the Geneva Conventions, genocide, and crimes against humanity.

 

International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) is an independent international organization, established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. An international treaty adopted in 1982, the Convention defines the outer limits to which coastal nations can claim jurisdiction over their adjacent waters, provides regulations for maritime issues of potential international dispute, and set up the International Seabed Authority, which is devoted to organizing and controlling activities in the deep seabed.

 

Permanent Court of Arbitration
The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) offers services for resolving disputes between states, between states and private parties, as well as disputes involving intergovernmental organizations. These services include arbitration, conciliation, fact-finding commissions of inquiry, and mediation. In addition, the International Bureau of the PCA offers hearing facilities and ancillary administrative services to tribunals operating ad hoc or under the rules of other institutions, and is available to facilitate arbitrations conducted under the UNCITRAL Arbitral Rules established in 1976.

 

Special Court for Sierra Leone
The Special Court for Sierra Leone was set up jointly by the Government of Sierra Leone and the United Nations. It is responsible for trying those accused of crimes against humanity, violations of Common Article 3 to the Geneva Conventions and of Additional Protocol II, other serious violations of international humanitarian law and crimes under the laws of Sierra Leone.

 

World Intellectual Property Organization Arbitration & Mediation Center
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Arbitration and Mediation Center was established in 1994 to offer services for the resolution of international commercial disputes between private parties. Developed by experts in cross-border dispute settlement, the procedures offered by the Center are appropriate for technology, entertainment, and other disputes involving intellectual property.

 

World Trade Organization Appellate Body
The World Trade Organization (WTO) resolves trade disputes under the Dispute Settlement Understanding to ensure that international trade flows smoothly.

Intergovernmental Organizations

Asian Development Bank (ADB)
ADB is a multilateral institution dedicated to the planning and financing of development-related projects throughout Asia and the Pacific. ADB consists of 67 members, mostly in the Asian and Pacific region, but also including many European countries, Canada, and the United States. It extends loans and equity investments to member countries, provides technical assistance for development projects and advisory services, promotes and facilitates investment for development, and helps coordinate development policies and plans.

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
The EBRD is devoted to facilitating the transition to capitalist, market-based economies in Central and Eastern Europe. It seeks to help these countries implement economic reform, including de-monopolization, decentralization, and privatization. The Bank also works with co-financing and foreign direct investment from the private and public sectors, the mobilization of domestic capital, and technical cooperation.

European Commission
The Commission serves as the de facto executive organ of the European Union (EU). Its three main functions are making proposals for new legislation, enforcing EU legislation and treaties, and implementing policy.

European Union
The EU represents approximately 400 million people in 27 member countries across Europe. It is a supra-national institution that serves as the driving force behind European integration. As part of its mission, the EU deals with a vast array of economic, political, military, social and environmental issues with legal implications.

Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
The mission of the Inter-American Development Bank is to promote economic and social development in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB today is the main source of multilateral financing for economic, social and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as for regional integration. It provides loans, grants, guarantees, policy advice and technical assistance to the public and private sectors throughout the region.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
The IAEA is an independent intergovernmental organization that is part of the UN organization. The IAEA is the world’s center of cooperation in the nuclear field and works with its Member States and multiple partners worldwide to promote safe, secure and peaceful nuclear technologies. The Office of Legal Affairs provides advice internally and to the various policy-making organs of the IAEA.

International Fund for Agricultural Development
The mission of IFAS’s 164 member states is to help improve the food production, nutrition, and income of the rural poor in developing countries. IFAD seeks to raise productivity and improve access to resources for agricultural development projects and programs.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)
The IMF seeks to promote international monetary cooperation and stability, especially in developing countries undergoing balance of payments difficulties. It appraises exchange rate policies in light of each country’s general economic situation, provides technical expertise and aid, and extends credits and loans to support economic adjustment and reform.

International Organization for Migration (IOM)
IOM is committed to the principle that “humane and orderly migration benefits both migrants and society”. IOM operates resettlement and refugee relief programs around the world and provides technical assistance, professional training, medical services, and language/cultural orientation.

International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
The ITU is an agency created to encourage and coordinate global telecommunications development, cooperation and standardization. Headquartered in Geneva, the ITU is made up of three main sectors, including the Radiocommunication Bureau, the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, and the Telecommunication Development Bureau.

Office of the United High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Headquartered in Washington, DC, the World Bank Group has offices in over 100 countries. Financially independent of the UN, the World Bank Group’s core business is to lend money to developing countries and offers a wide variety of financial, legal, and technical services. It is devoted to three overarching goals: human development, environmentally sustainable development, and private sector development.

World Health Organization (WHO)
The WHO is a UN agency with 193 member states, created to improve health conditions for people around the globe. The organization’s goals include promoting global health standards, eradicating disease, and equipping nations with the technology to battle diseases. The WHO collaborates with other UN agencies where necessary to accomplish its mission.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
WIPO is a specialized agency of the United Nations dedicated to developing a balanced and accessible international intellectual property system which rewards creativity, stimulates innovation, and contributes to economic development while safeguarding the public interest.

World Trade Organization
The functions of the World Trade Organization include: administering WTO trade agreements; providing a forum for trade negotiations; handling trade disputes; monitoring national trade policies; providing technical assistance and training for developing countries; and cooperating with other international organizations.

Nongovernmental Organizations

Africa and Middle East Refugee Assistance Legal Aid Project
The mission of AMERA is to promote the legal protection of asylum seekers and refugees through increasing access to administrative justice in international and local institutions; providing legal advice on matters relating to asylum determination, resettlement, family reunification, and other matters relating to the enjoyment of the fundamental rights; and educating members of the legal profession in matters relating to the law affecting refugees in Africa and the Middle East.

American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative
The Rule of Law Initiative is a public service project of the American Bar Association dedicated to promoting legal reform efforts around the globe. The Rule of Law Initiative believes that rule of law promotion is the most effective long-term antidote to the pressing problems facing the world community today, including poverty, economic stagnation, and conflict.

American Non-Governmental Organizations Coalition for the ICC
AMICC is a coalition of non-governmental organizations committed to achieving full United States support for the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the earliest possible US ratification of the Court’s Rome Statute. AMICC members believe that strong participation by the US in the ICC is essential to the future of the Court as an effective institution.

Amnesty International
Amnesty International is principally concerned with the dissemination and education of all human rights as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Amnesty International plans research and takes action aimed at preventing and ending grave abuses of these rights, demanding that all governments and other powerful entities respect the rule of law.

Center for Constitutional Rights
The Center for Constitutional Rights is a nonprofit legal and educational organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the rights guaranteed by the US Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Center for International Environmental Law
The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) is a nonprofit organization working to use international law and institutions to protect the environment, promote human health, and ensure a just and sustainable society. CIEL provide a wide range of services including legal counsel, policy research, analysis, advocacy, education, training, and capacity building.

Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA)
The Center for Justice and Accountability is an international human rights legal services organization. Through litigation and other advocacy CJA seeks redress for victims of gross human rights violations and raises public awareness about torture and other abuses.

Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL)
CEJIL works to ensure full implementation of international human rights norms in the Organization of American States (OAS) through the use of the Inter-American Commission and Court. CEJIL represents victims before the Commission and the Court, assists activists in bringing cases, and provides training and guidance on effectively using the Inter-American human rights mechanisms.

Center for Reproductive Rights
The Center for Reproductive Rights uses the law to advance reproductive freedom as a fundamental right that all governments are legally obligated to protect, respect and fulfill. The Center has strengthened reproductive health laws and policies across the globe by working with more than 100 organizations in 45 nations including countries in Africa, Asia, East Central Europe, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

EarthRights International (ERI)
EarthRights International works to protect humans and their natural environments from abuses occurring in the name of development. ERI has offices in the US and Southeast Asia.

Earthjustice
Earthjustice is dedicated to protecting the environment. Earthjustice strives to bring about far-reaching change by enforcing and strengthening environmental laws on behalf of organizations and communities.

Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW)
ELAW is an international alliance of public interest attorneys and scientists dedicated to defending the environment and human rights in their home countries. ELAW US assists public interest advocates around the world in gaining the skills and resources they need to protect the environment through law.

Environmental Law Institute
The Environmental Law Institute is an internationally recognized, independent research and education center that works to advance environmental protection by improving law, policy, and management.

Global Rights
Global Rights is a human rights advocacy group that partners with local activists to challenge injustice and amplify new voices with the global discourse.

Human Rights in China
Human Rights in China (HRIC) is an international, Chinese, non-governmental organization with a mission to promote international human rights and advance the institutional protection of these rights in the People’s Republic of China. HRIC’s board and staff include Chinese, North American, and European individuals devoted to fostering greater space for democratic reforms and social justice.

Human Rights First
Human Rights First protects people at risk: refugees who flee persecution, victims of crimes against humanity or other mass human rights violations, victims of discrimination, those whose rights are eroded in the name of national security, and human rights advocates who are targeted for defending the rights of others. Human Rights First works to prevent violations against these groups and to seek justice and accountability for violations against them.

Human Rights Watch (HRW)
HRW is the largest US-based international human rights organization. Through its reporting and advocacy campaigns it seeks to publicize abuses committed by governments and exert pressure on national governments and international entities.

Immigrant and Refugee Appellate Center
The Immigrant and Refugee Appellate Center (IRAC) is a public interest immigration law firm. It is dedicated to representing persons from throughout the world in immigration matters.

International City/County Management Association
Founded in 1914, the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) is the professional and educational association for more than 8,000 appointed administrators and assistant administrators serving cities, counties, other local governments, and regional entities around the world. ICMA’s mission is to create excellence in local government by developing and fostering professional local government management worldwide.

International Commission of Jurists
The International Commission of Jurists is dedicated to the primacy, coherence and implementation of international law and principles that advance human rights. It is impartial, objective and authoritative legal approach to the protection and promotion of human rights through the rule of law. The ICJ provides legal expertise at both the international and national levels to ensure that developments in international law adhere to human rights principles and that international standards are implemented at the national level.

International Crisis Group
The International Crisis Group is an independent, non-profit, multinational organization with over 80 staff members on five continents, working through field-based analysis and high-level advocacy to prevent and resolve deadly conflict.

International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights is a self-governing group of non-governmental, not-for-profit organizations that act to protect human rights throughout Europe, North America, and the Central Asian republics formed from the territories of the former Soviet Union. A primary specific goal is the monitor compliance with the human rights provisions of the Helsinki Final Act and its Follow-up Documents.

International Institute of Humanitarian Law
The International Institute of Humanitarian Law is an independent, non-profit humanitarian organization founded in 1970. The main purpose of the Institute is to promote international humanitarian law, human rights, refugee law and related issues.

International Justice Mission
International Justice Mission is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to ensure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to promote functioning public justice systems.

International Law Institute (ILI)
The ILI is an independent, non-profit educational institution serving an international constituency of government officials, legal and business professionals and scholars from its headquarters in Washington, D.C. ILI’s mission is to raise levels of professional competence and capacity in all nations so that professionals everywhere may achieve practical solutions to common problems in ways that suit their nations’ own needs.

International Republican Institute
The International Republican Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting democracy and the rule of law throughout the world.

International Rescue Committee (IRC)
The IRC helps people worldwide who are fleeing racial, religious, and ethnic persecution as well as those uprooted by war and violence. IRC staff and volunteers work in some of the most economically devastated, politically unstable places in Africa, Asia, and Europe, including the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, and the former Soviet Union. Its activities include providing medical services, food and shelter, and public health and sanitation assistance in refugee emergencies.

International Service for Human Rights
The International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) is an international non-governmental organization serving human rights defenders. ISHR’s vision is the development, strengthening, effective use and implementation of international and regional standards and mechanisms for the protection and promotion of human rights.

Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights
Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights is dedicated to the promotion and protection of internationally recognized human rights. Minnesota Advocates documents human rights abuses, advocates on behalf of individual victims, educates on human rights issues, and provides training and technical assistance to address and prevent human rights violations.

National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
The National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) is a nonprofit organization working to strengthen and expand democracy worldwide. Calling on a global network of volunteer experts, NDI provides practical assistance to civic and political leaders advancing democratic values, practices and institutions. NDI works with democrats in every region of the world to build political and civic organizations, safeguard elections, and to promote citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
The NRDC is dedicated to protecting the global environment and preserving natural resources through litigation. Its staff includes resource specialists, scientists, and attorneys.

Open Society Institute
The Open Society Institute works to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens. To achieve its mission, OSI seeks to shape public policies that assure greater fairness in political, legal, and economic systems and to safeguard fundamental rights.

U.S. Governmental Agencies

Agency for International Development (USAID)
USAID administers the US governmentÂ’s non-military foreign aid. Its mission is to help developing countries acquire the knowledge and resources necessary to strengthen their economic, political, and social institutions.

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
The CIAÂ’s Office of General Counsel handles, among other things, legal issues relating to foreign intelligence and counterintelligence activities, international terrorism, international narcotics trafficking, nonproliferation, personnel and security matters, clandestine movement of materials and supplies, contracting, finance and budget matters, legislation, and both civil and criminal litigation.

Court of International Trade (USCIT)
The US Court of International Trade settles disputes arising from international trade. The court is composed of nine judges and 18 attorneys in the judgesÂ’ chambers.

Department of Agriculture (USDA)
The USDA manages a wide variety of activities related to a domestic and foreign agriculture. Its international work includes running export market development programs and administering import regulations.

Department of Commerce
The Office of General Counsel of the Department of Commerce focuses on international trade-related issues including: foreign market access and development, trade agreement compliance, foreign investment, export licensing, antidumping duties and countervailing duties.

Department of Justice (DOJ)
The Department of Justice is the office of the Attorney General and serves as the nationÂ’s litigator. The departmentÂ’s major client is the federal government and its agencies. A primary responsibility of the DOJ is to represent the US in court. Throughout the DOJ, attorneys frequently deal with both public and private international law and immigration law.

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seeks to stem the flow of illicit drugs entering the United States. The DEA maintains 86 offices in 62 foreign countries and often work with foreign governments.

Department of Labor (DOL)
The Department of Labor is concerned with a wide variety of labor related issues. The Bureau of International Labor Affairs carries out DOLÂ’s international responsibilities.

Department of State
The US Department of State carries out US foreign policy and maintains diplomatic relations with approximately 180 countries throughout the world. Composed of Civil Service employees, Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) and Foreign Service Specialists (FSSs), the Department employs more than 6,000 professionals based in Washington, D.C., domestic field offices, overseas embassies and consulates, and the US Mission to the United Nations in New York.

Department of Transportation
The DOT coordinates national transportation policy for the federal government. It handles air, highway, rail, and sea transportation within and outside of the United States. Within the Office of General Counsel, the Office of International Law is responsible for international transportation policies and programs.

Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury oversees a wide-range of programs relating to economic, financial, and tax policy. The attorneys of the Chief CounselÂ’s Office for the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) provide legal advice in connection with OFACÂ’s enforcement of economic sanctions against foreign governments and organizations.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
The EPAÂ’s mission is to protect human health and to safeguard the natural environment. The Cross-Cutting Issues Law Office is responsible for International Environmental Law. It provides legal services in connection with the international aspects of EPAÂ’s environmental programs and also participates in the negotiation of international trade and investment agreements to ensure that environmental concerns are taken into account.

Export-Import Bank of the United States
The Export-Import Bank of the United States is the official export credit agency of the United States. Ex-Im BankÂ’s mission is to assist in financing the export of US goods and services to international markets.

Federal Communications Commission
The FCC is an independent federal agency responsible for regulating interstate and international communications. Lawyers work with the International Bureau (IB), which deals with international telecommunications regulation, licensing, policies, and programs. This bureau represents the FCC with international organizations and foreign governments.

Federal Maritime Commission
The Federal Maritime Commission regulates US and foreign ocean-borne commerce and ensures reciprocity with foreign governments.

Federal Reserve System
The Federal Reserve System (or the “Fed”) is the central bank of the US. Among other responsibilities, it formulates and executes monetary policy, supervises and regulates depository institutions, provides an elastic currency, assists the federal governmentÂ’s financing operations, and serves as the banker of the US government.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
The Federal Trade CommissionÂ’s Office of International Affairs focuses on the international issues connected with the FTCÂ’s competition and consumer protection missions. The Office is located at FTC headquarters in Washington, DC. Their work involves international aspects of law enforcement, protecting US consumers from the anticompetitive conduct abroad and from cross-border fraud, and policy coordination to promote international convergence toward best practices.

Inter-American Foundation (IAF)
The IAF is an independent US government agency with the mission of promoting social change and development in Latin America and the Caribbean. It provides economic assistance and also enters into partnerships with public and private sector entities to mobilize grassroots development.

International Trade Commission (ITC)
The ITC, an independent quasi-judicial federal agency, provides technical assistance and advice on international trade issues to the executive and legislative branches and administers US trade remedy laws. Its major operations are import injury investigations, intellectual property-based import investigations, research, trade information, and trade policy support.

Judge Advocate General Corps
The Judge Advocate General Corps provides legal counsel to the US Navy, Army and Air Force divisions of the military. These positions are extremely competitive and require service with the military (varies according to military branch), yet allow for ample opportunities to travel and live abroad.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
The NRC ensures adequate protection of public health and safety, the common defense and security, and the environment in the use of nuclear material and facilities in the US. The NRC often works closely with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a specialized agency of the United Nations.

Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC)
OPIC is a small, independent agency of the United States Government. Since 1971, OPIC has served as the key federal agency for encouraging mutually beneficial American business investments in the worldÂ’s developing nations, thereby improving US global competitiveness, creating American jobs and increasing US exports. Specifically, OPIC operates three main programs: insuring US investors against certain political risks (currency inconvertibility, expropriation, war, revolution, insurrection and civil strife); financing private sector and mixed public/private projects through loans and loan guaranties; and providing pre-investment consulting services to US companies that are considering investments abroad.

Peace Corps
The Peace Corps sends US citizens to more than 70 countries as volunteers working in education, health and nutrition, business and economic development, environmental education, and other development-related fields. Individuals with legal expertise may be assigned to posts that take advantage of their legal skills.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The SEC is an independent, quasi-judicial regulatory agency that administers federal securities law, ensuring compliance through regulation and enforcement. The SEC employs hundreds of attorneys, but most international legal work is done in the Office of International Affairs and Office of International Corporate Finance.

Trade and Development Agency
The US Trade and Development Agency advances economic development and US commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries.

Trade Representative (USTR)
The United States Trade Representative operates within the Executive Office of the President. USTR negotiates trade agreements, drafts and submits legislation, and represents the US in WTO and NAFTA trade disputes.

Private Law Firms

NALP Directory of Legal Employers

ABA Section of International Law: Law Firm Profile Listings


Posted

in

,

by

Tags:

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *