Application for Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship -- Brooklyn Law School

1. Why are you interested in a public interest law career?

My mission is to serve that sector of society which is most vulnerable: those people with limited economic means, who oftentimes face other challenges due to their educational background, language skills, or ethnic/racial background. Assessing my own experiences, strengths, and skills, my goal is to be an effective lawyer working in the public interest.

As a Legal Services paralegal, it has become apparent that my hands are metaphorically tied behind my back. Like a carpenter who lacks a hammer, I lack the tool necessary to fulfill my ultimate commitment: a law degree, the symbol and culmination of a quality legal education. With this tool, I will honor my commitment to help those in need, and in doing so, effect immediate positive change in the low-income community. My admission into law school is a requisite for my continued integrity to those whom I serve, as well as to my own ambitions.

2. What experiences have shaped your interest and commitment to public interest law?

From February 2001 through the present, I have worked as a paralegal in the family law unit of Philadelphia Legal Assistance. My work entails interviewing low-income clients to analyze legal matters relating to various domestic relations matters. Upon gathering all pertinent information (including reviewing pleadings and notices) and analyzing the matter, I provide direct legal advice and assistance to the client. Appropriate and eligible cases for representation are referred to our staff of family law attorneys at the conclusion of each week.

In the spring of 2001, 2002 and 2004, I volunteered to prepare income tax returns at the Philadelphia Legal Assistance/Philadelphia Volunteers for the Indigent Program Low Income Tax Clinic in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. The clinic prepares tax returns without cost to low-income clients. My fluency in the Spanish language was utilized since most of the clinic’s clients are Spanish-speaking farmworkers.

Through these experiences (and others), I have observed the vulnerabilities of the indigent associated with - and arising from - their low-income status, including a deficient education or difficulty with the English language. These difficulties exacerbate the average litigant’s ability to access justice.

The reward I receive is the satisfaction of a victim gaining protection from her abuser, a child’s parent receiving the support necessary to raise him properly, a hard-working farmworker receiving his due income tax return which he will send to support his wife and children. The reward I receive is the practical proof that my part in our justice system is helping to create a better, more just society, one family, or even one person at a time.


3. In what area(s) of public interest law are you particularly interested?

I am primarily interested in two areas of public interest law: immigration law and labor law. This interest is a response to the changing demographics of our country, in which there is an increasing number of Latino citizens and Latin American immigrants. Practice in either area of public interest law is important in order to protect the legal rights of an under-represented population, and to serve them within a justice system which - for many - is foreign, both literally and figuratively.