Berkeley Law is proud to offer a new post‐graduate fellowship program — the Christian (“Chris”) Larsen Justice Fellowship, administered by the Criminal Law & Justice Center to support a limited number of May 2024 J.D. graduates in public interest or public sector work with a focus on criminal justice.
The Larsen Justice Fellowship Program, which Berkeley Law is offering for the first time in 2024, is administered by the Criminal Law & Justice Center thanks to the generous support of Chris Larsen. The Larsen Justice Fellowship supports recent Berkeley Law graduates pursuing careers in public interest or government work with a focus on criminal justice. Priority will be given to those graduates who most need a yearlong apprenticeship to develop the skills and experience to be competitive for launching careers in public interest/public sector criminal justice.
Each Fellow must work with an eligible sponsoring organization, doing work supervised by attorneys that requires a J.D. or draws heavily on the Fellow’s legal education and training. Fellows and sponsoring agencies will be required to certify that they will adhere to the goals and guidelines of the fellowship program. Some of the most important of these guidelines include sitting for the next available bar exam (i.e. July 2024 for May 2024 graduates), completing the fellowship over the course of 12 consecutive months, writing mid-year and year-end fellowship reports, and attending an annual conference. Fellowships will ideally begin within four to six weeks of taking the next available Bar exam, i.e. September 2024, but must start no later than December 31, 2024 for May 2024 graduates. Fellowships will end when the Fellow finds a permanent position or at the end of the twelve‐month fellowship period, whichever comes sooner. Applicants or Fellows who anticipate having any difficulties meeting these core requirements, or who encounter any change in circumstances, must agree that they will notify the Criminal Law & Justice Center promptly in order to discuss whether appropriate adjustments can be made.
Larsen Justice Fellowship Awards will consist of $49,500 for one year of work ($4,125/month), plus $5,500 to help defray bar‐related costs, plus $5,500 to help defray healthcare costs. Larsen Justice Fellows are not employees of Berkeley Law and will not receive employment benefits from Berkeley Law, but sponsoring organizations are strongly encouraged to provide supplemental funding and/or benefits to Fellows placed with them.