Law Fellow for Nonprofits
Grants are available to New Jersey Non-Profits to fund a Law Fellow (a law graduate or new attorney) to work with the host nonprofit organization on a project in the area of public interest law and develop advocacy and other legal skills. Applicants and the host organization will work together to submit a joint application for funding. Grant funds include salary, professional development expenses, New Jersey State Bar Association membership fees, reimbursement for work related travel, reimbursement for the Bar Exam (if applicable) and more. Fellowship grants are made possible through funding from the IOLTA Fund of the Bar of New Jersey.
Funding Cycle: 2025-2026
The application portal for 2025-2026 is closed.
Questions: Contact Kate Coscarelli, Associate Executive Director, Administration and Grants.
2025-2026 Law Fellows
Here is what this year’s recipients shared about their Law Fellow opportunity:
Laurie Bartolomeo – Rutgers – Camden ’25 – will join Disability Rights New Jersey and represent IOLTA-eligible youth from underrepresented backgrounds (race, socioeconomic status, and disability) in special education and disability-related matters as part of the Youth Justice Project. “Gaining real-world, practical experience in advocating for marginalized and/or disabled students will help me develop and apply skills to help as many young people as possible. Working with Disability Rights New Jersey to provide educate and provide direct representation to referred individuals in need of school-based advocacy will help vulnerable youth and their caregivers.”
Katherine Considine – Seton Hall ’24 – will join the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and will focus on upholding the rule of law and empowering immigrant families in New Jersey during a period of anticipated changes in immigration law and enforcement patterns. “With the help of the NJSBF Fellowship, I can apply my passion and experience in representing immigrants and the research and writing skills to expand the resources available to empower New Jersey’s immigrant families. I am passionate about upholding civil rights and liberties, and legal skills and look forward to contributing to the ACLU-NJ’s essential work to protect the legal rights of New Jersey’s immigrant communities.”
Adaneka Witter Judge – Rutgers – Newark ’25 will join Volunteer Lawyers for Justice to provide free education and direct legal services to low-income older adults in Essex County. “This fellowship provides me with the opportunity to advocate for the rights of older adults, ensuring they receive the legal protections they deserve so that they can avoid homelessness and instability. I look forward to working with the VLNJ team to fulfill its mission to mobilize volunteers to work alongside staff to address critical legal needs across New Jersey for the most vulnerable members of our community.”
Kayalyn Kibbe – Rutgers – Newark ‘25 – will join Northeast New Jersey Legal Services to ensure for low-income LGBTQIA+ residents of Bergen, Hudson and Passaic Counties have access to a wide array of legal information and direct representation, including legal services related to the legal name change process, housing access, and public benefits. “I am grateful to NJSBF for this fellowship. As a non-binary law student, I am extremely passionate about providing legal education to transgender and non-binary New Jerseyans. Being a part of the Northeast New Jersey Legal Services team gives me an opportunity to continue to use the skills I gained as a student and legal intern to make a real difference in my community.”
Application Suggestions and Tips
Finding A Host Organization
NJSBF does not match Fellows with their host organizations. The Fellow candidate and prospective host organization should search each other out and then jointly prepare the application.
Fellow candidates may find organizations in several ways:
- checking out the NJSBF list of Cosponsors at https://njsbf.org/about-njsbf/opportunities-for-funding/cosponsorship-programs/
- talking to their law school’s career services office
- contacting organizations that the candidate previously volunteered or worked for
- approaching an organization that does the type of work that you are interested in or is active in the community you would like to impact
- searching on social media and job boards for announcements about open positions or hiring needs
Host Organization - Eligibility & Background
Eligibility
The host organization must be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The host organization must employ an attorney who is able to provide supervision to the Fellow for the duration of the term. In addition, the host organization must be able to provide the Fellow with the necessary technology and resources to be successful, such as a workspace, computer, internet access, phone, etc.
Host Organization Background
This document should be created by the prospective host organization with input from the candidate. Tell us about the organization overall ( your mission, the work you do, the people you serve, and what makes you unique). In addition, we want to know the candidate’s history / connection with the host organization and details about the supervision that will be offered to the Fellow.
The organization should be prepared to provide:
- The candidate’s history at the organization, if any
- Information about previous Fellows hosted by the organization, if any
- Details about the proposed supervisor:
- Relevant issue area experience
- Supervision and management experience
- The proposed level of interaction with the Fellow
- A description of the technology and resources that will be available to the Fellow; whether the Fellow is working in-person, remotely or in a hybrid manner
- Information about the candidate’s salary and benefits
Preference will be given to organizations that are current or former Cosponsor partners of NJSBF.
Candidates - Eligibility & Other Requirements
Eligibility
You must have graduated from law school before June 2025 with a J.D. or LL.M. You must not have previously held a full-time lawyer position. Applicants coming from clerkships are eligible; applicants who are coming from fellowships are not. If selected as a Fellow, the candidate must agree to work full-time for the host organization, with no outside employment that would interfere with the Fellowship.
Cover Letter
This document should be created and signed by the candidate and reviewed by the prospective host organization. In this letter, you will provide a personal statement and describe the ways in which your personal background and experiences make you uniquely qualified to serve the identified community. Explain your interest in non-profit work, your experience in the sector to date, and your connection to the community with which you will work. If you have had any connection with NJSBF (such as a recipient of an NJSBF law school scholarship), be sure to mention that.
Candidate Letters of Recommendation
You should obtain and upload two letters of recommendation from people you have worked with who can comment on your skills and potential success as an NJSBF Fellow, such as supervisors or professors. If you interned at your proposed host organization previously, you may use them as one of the letter writers. Please make sure that the letters contain the name of the letter writer’s organization and contact information.
Project Description
This part should be a collaborative effort between the prospective host organization and the candidate and contain a detailed narrative about the work to be performed by the Fellow during their time as an NJSBF Fellow. Please keep in mind, in developing the scope of work, that NJSBF is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging throughout all of its programs and activities.
Eligible projects are those that benefit residents of the State of New Jersey, support underserved populations, and contain a legal education component. In addition, because the Fellowship is made possible through funding from the IOLTA Fund of the Bar of New Jersey, the project shall comply with the purposes specified in New Jersey Court Rule 1:28A, which specifies that proceeds from the IOLTA Fund be used for one of the following purposes:
- Legal aid to the poor;
- Improvement in the administration of justice; and/or
- Education of lay persons in legal and justice related areas.
NJSBF believes that informed citizens are better citizens and a core component of NJSBF’s mission is to provide free law related information to the public. Projects should include some aspect that serves the community. Perhaps it is a webinar or flyer that presents Know Your Rights information to an underserved population. Or maybe it is a public conference organized with other Fellows / organizations that addresses ongoing legal issues affecting low-income people. NJSBF is looking for projects that fulfill its mission and have an impact on the community. Be sure to describe how you will make that happen.
Preference will be given to projects that fall within one or more of these areas of law: housing stability, education law (including special ed and student rights, such as the rights of incarcerated students), disability (including mental health and substance abuse), veterans, immigration, domestic violence and workers’ rights.
The project description should include:
- A one-sentence description of the project and the population it seeks to help
- A statement of need describing the issues to be addressed and the reasons the project is timely
- The goals of the project, including strategies, anticipated outcomes, and plans for sustainability beyond the Fellowship term
- A description of how the project will be distinct from the work of staff attorneys or previous Fellows, if any
- A timeline of the Fellowship project, broken down into six-month increments
- A description of potential NJSBF involvement. Is there a way for NJSBF to be involved in or connected to your project?
- An acknowledgment of similar services within the community, with a description of what distinguishes your project, and ways in which collaboration may be possible
- A description of the technology and resources that will be available to the Fellow; whether the Fellow is working in-person, remotely or in a hybrid manner
- Information about the candidate’s salary and benefits