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Working in the US
What will the work involve?
How can I prepare?
Former Interns
Further Information & Applications

"I mentioned to our Amicus intern that he should read up … and get a motion together based on the argument for our pending retrial…he worked through the issue and drafted a nice motion with affidavits from the doctors … He then shared his work with the Texas office and another Amicus intern over there [Texas]. They used it and this guy didn't die last night. I can't think of a way to overstate the importance of this work. The guy didn't die. Kind of says it all. Everyone over there [UK] ought to know about this. It makes it all worthwhile. Thank you."

"She quickly justified my confidence and I was able to turn my complete attention to my other client. She assumed all responsibility for contacting and interviewing witnesses, issuing and serving subpoenas, along with all other tasks that accompany pre-trial preparation and courtroom duties…she created the case packet upon which I will be utterly reliant when the case again goes to trial!"

[quotes from practising attorneys]

Working in the US
One of the key ways in which UK lawyers and students can assist is by working in the office of a US death penalty attorney. Amicus has years of experience in seconding lawyers and placing student interns throughout the USA. Placements are normally for between 3 and 6 months although we have several interns who have stayed for 12 and even 18 months.

Placements can be in cities and towns all over the USA. In previous years Amicus has placed lawyers and interns with attorneys at some of the best known death penalty offices, including the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Texas Defender Service, Southern Center for Human Rights, Louisiana Crisis Assistance Center and the Equal Justice Initiative in Alabama.

As well as providing a vital resource for the US attorneys, these placements are a rewarding experience for those that undertake them. In many ways, the US system is far more developed in terms of preparation and legal argument than in the UK. With the development of a written system of rights by the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights, there is no better time for UK lawyers to get experience working in a fully developed constitutional and common law system. For the US attorneys, Amicus lawyers and interns represent experienced lawyers or students who are ready to provide much needed practical assistance from day one.

What will the work involve?
UK lawyers seconded to offices in the USA will be asked to perform a variety of tasks. Sometimes the work will be legal, assisting in the preparation of legal submissions for trial, or even assisting during a trial or appeal hearing. However, much of the work will be in the form of investigations, something that UK lawyers are not necessarily so experienced at, particularly those from the Bar, and may also consist of administrative work as offices often lack the most basic of support.

Interns may well find themselves interviewing witnesses, either as to fact or in the development of mitigation evidence required for the sentencing phase of the trial. Under US law, attorneys are allowed to approach jurors to ascertain whether the trial process was fully in accordance with the law, and UK interns will gain this experience, unique amongst their peers. There are often more challenging tasks, such as interviewing the family of the deceased in an attempt to ascertain their views, and potentially change them. Sensitivity and common sense are obviously key requirements for these tasks.

Legal research will often be heavily computer based, which is why the training programme covers this area. Preparation for trial is often more structured than in the UK, and the development of pre-trial motions and legal submissions for use during the course of the trial or appeal can take many weeks. Other areas of research frequently undertaken include press coverage of earlier trials and conducting statistical analysis.

How can I prepare?
It is very important that interns do not waste their first few weeks in the US finding their feet and learning the basics. That is why the Amicus training programme has been developed as a pre-requisite to any arranged internship - so that Amicus interns are of practical assistance to the US attorneys from day one. Prior to a placement each candidate will be interviewed to assess their suitability for an Amicus internship, and to ascertain which office would be most appropriate to their experience; Amicus has developed substantial contacts in the US and has knowledge of a large range of different offices.

Amicus has an intern team who will assist with enquiries as to internships and prepare the candidate by giving practical advice as to the placement to be undertaken.

Amicus also runs a mentoring scheme to put future interns in touch with former and current interns.

Former Interns
Those who have undertaken placements for Amicus include barristers from chambers in London and across the country, as well as solicitors from big City firms and criminal high street practices. Post-graduate students who apply for internships are generally undertaking masters degrees in appropriate areas, or the practical training of the Bar Vocational Course or the Legal Practice Course. Amicus has also placed senior undergraduate students from the specialist US death penalty courses at the University of Central England, Westminster University and Glasgow. Non-lawyers with other areas of expertise have also been placed on a number of occasions.

Having worked on the ground in the USA, lawyers and interns are well placed to provide assistance in other ways. For example, previous interns have returned to the USA to attend appeal hearings in cases they had worked on, have drafted international appeals and amicus curiae briefs, and have been able to help with the training programme.

Internships have also served people well for their future careers. Several former interns have been offered positions in the US working alongside death penalty attorneys as a direct result of the work carried out during their internships. Other interns have gone on to work at the Criminal Cases Review Commission, Sarajevo War Crimes Tribunal, International Justice Project and the Public Law Project. Others are now tenants at top human rights and criminal chambers and major law firms.

Further Information and Applications
The Amicus Internship Information Booklet provides further information on internships and can be downloaded by clicking here (MS Word, 215Kb). To apply for an internship, you should complete and return the form by clicking here (MS Word, 194Kb).

The charity is designed to assist in the provision of legal representation for those awaiting capital trial and punishment in the US.

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