Equal Justice Works / Skadden Legal Fellowship

Equal Justice Works / Skadden Legal Fellowship Candidate (Fall 2027) Host Organization: Jailhouse Lawyer Initiative (JLI) at the Legal Empowerment & Advocacy Hub (L.E.A.H.)

Location: New York, NY (Hosted at the Bernstein Institute for Human Rights, NYU School of Law)

Duration: 1 or 2 years (Depending on funding stream)

Application Cycle: Fall 2026 (For a Fall 2027 start)

About the Organizations

The Legal Empowerment & Advocacy Hub (L.E.A.H.) equips communities impacted by incarceration and systemic injustice with the knowledge, tools, and relationships to navigate, transform, and shape systems through legal empowerment and peacebuilding. L.E.A.H. embodies "inside-out legal empowerment"—making the law a tool of transformation and belonging rather than exclusion.

The Jailhouse Lawyer Initiative (JLI), a project of L.E.A.H. founded by formerly incarcerated jailhouse lawyer Jhody Polk, exists to disrupt cycles of incarceration. JLI operates as a unique three-strand cord connecting jailhouse lawyers (currently and formerly incarcerated legal workers), lawyers/law students, and institutions. We leverage these partnerships not to gatekeep legal knowledge, but to tear down traditional barriers and ensure incarcerated legal workers have access to quality legal education, training, and a supportive community.

Position Overview

JLI is seeking a passionate, community-minded prospective Legal Fellow to co-design and apply for project funding during the Fall 2026 application cycle for a Fall 2027 start date.

We will partner with the candidate to apply for prospective funding streams, including the Equal Justice Works (EJW) Fellowship, Skadden Fellowship, and law school-sponsored post-graduate fellowships.

Hosted in office space at the Bernstein Institute for Human Rights at NYU School of Law, the Fellow will be deeply embedded in JLI’s core legal empowerment, legal education, and advocacy work.

Key Responsibilities & Potential Activities

Jailhouse Lawyer & Community Paralegal Support

• Respond to legal research and resource requests from incarcerated advisors.
• Connect incarcerated advisors with law school clinics, practicing attorneys, and pro bono networks.
• Provide direct legal consultation and mentorship to jailhouse lawyers on complex legal questions.
• Co-create tailored legal writing, research tools, and training programs that adapt to correctional facility limitations.
• Collaborate with community paralegals to develop and facilitate Community Paralegal Training sessions using popular education models.
• Facilitate peer learning networks connecting jailhouse lawyers across varied areas of expertise.

Strategic Litigation & Policy Advocacy

• Conduct legal research and analysis on precedents related to institutional policies, rights, and legal access for incarcerated people.
• Draft legal memoranda, comment letters, and advocacy documents to support impact litigation efforts that advance the rights and recognition of jailhouse lawyers.
• Collaborate with jailhouse lawyers, community paralegals and external partner organizations on coordinated legal advocacy and policy campaigns.

Qualifications

• Education/Status: Current 3L law student graduating in Spring 2027, or a recent law graduate/clerk eligible for Fall 2027 post-graduate fellowships.
• Mission Alignment: Demonstrated commitment to legal empowerment, prison abolition, human rights, and social justice.
• Lived Experience: Individuals directly impacted by the legal system, including formerly incarcerated legal workers, are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Skills: Strong legal research, writing, and analytical skills; ability to communicate complex legal concepts clearly to non-lawyers; interest in/commitment to legal empowerment, movement lawyering and popular education.