The Importance of a Legal Intern Cover Letter
A legal intern cover letter is a powerful tool that can be the key to getting you hired for an internship. In today’s world where technology plays such a major role, it is easy for employers to overlook this key component. However, submitting a strong legal intern cover letter along with your resume can show employers that you are truly interested in working for their law firm. An employer who receives a resume without a legal intern cover letter may just assume that you are sending your resume out to as many places as possible, hoping that a bite will get you an interview. In today’s competitive environment, this is not enough to set you apart from the rest. While you may think that your qualifications speak for themselves, your resume does not express your personality, your passion for the law, or even your attention to detail . An ideal cover letter will allow you to do just that! An employer wants to see how you write, how you think, your level of interest, your personality and your goals. A legal intern cover letter presents you as a person, not just a resume.
Legal internships are some of the best opportunities available to law students still in school. An internship provides invaluable first-hand experience of what practicing law is actually like. Additionally, internships often provide an opportunity to get a foot in the door with a coveted job offer after law school. Therefore, if you are applying for an internship, you will want to make a great first impression to the employer. A legal intern cover letter can help with this. Not only will a well-drafted cover letter help to distinguish you from the competition, it will ensure that your application receives the attention that it deserves. After all, if the cover letter is not up to par why would an employer even bother reading the rest of your application?
What to Include in a Good Legal Intern Cover Letter
When it comes to a legal internship cover letter, there are several key components that must be addressed. To begin with, try to get the name of a person at the firm who is responsible for hiring interns and also address your cover letter to that person. You can usually find these individuals on the firm’s website. Otherwise, an opening like this suffices: Introductory sentence (or two) about why you are writing such as "I would like to apply for an internship in your firm for summer 2019." Then follow with a sentence or two indicating what you bring to the position. For example: "I am a rising second year law student at the University of XXX Law School. I would be excited to bring my skills to a legal intern position with your firm."
Once you’ve provided the above details, it is time to delve into your more relevant skills and experience. Depending on the person who is reading your letter, you can choose to discuss the following elements (in whatever order works best for you): Why you want to work at that particular firm-be sure to include any specifics, especially if you have a connection to them, such as alumni connections, volunteer efforts in the area, etc. This information will show the reader that you are interested in their specific firm and that you have done your homework on them. How you became interested in being a lawyer-this can be brief but will help to suggest who you are and how you have formed your career path. If space allows, you can add a sentence or two about your goals and how the internship fits into them. Next, discuss your education and qualifications in a way that shows you have given consideration to how they can apply in a practical way-for example, you might mention a paper you wrote, an article you read, a class you took, etc. Here is the time to discuss internships you have had and what you earned from them while also indicating the experience you received was valuable to you. Be sure to explain what skills you gained from these experiences and how they can apply to the firm you are applying to. Finally, if you feel comfortable, you can briefly discuss any outside interests you have that contribute to who you are as a prospective intern. Enumerate what they are, why you participate in them and how they can help you be a good firm fit.
Generally speaking, a good cover letter should fit on one page and be 3-5 paragraphs long. Use good judgment when it comes to the length of your cover letter along with the amount of information you include. Offer a closing statement about yourself and your enthusiasm for the position, such as: "Thank you for considering my application, I look forward to the possibility of meeting you." Thank the reader for the consideration of your application, then provide your contact information and put your letter in the proper format for a business letter. When you are done, proofread and spell check your cover letter for accuracy, including proofreading it out loud. It is better to take your time and ensure your cover letter is error free than to rush it and make mistakes that could affect your chances of getting an interview.
How to Specifically Tailor a Cover Letter for Legal Internships
Once you have completed your legal intern cover letter outlining your qualifications and experience, you have one more hurdle to overcome: ensuring that your cover letter is relevant to the particular employer to which you are submitting your application. Generic cover letters rarely ever result in interviews even when accompanied by strong resumes and writing samples. Your cover letter should refer to the specific firm or organization to which you are applying. If you have a particular area of interest, such as appellate work, it will be helpful to explain the reasons for your interest and how it relates to your career goals. Tailoring your letter to the recipient’s preferences shows that you have an understanding of the type of work they do, and that you have considered what makes you a good fit. Additionally, you should consider emphasizing the parts of your resume or writing sample that are most relevant to the employer. For example, if the firm you are applying to specializes in health care law and you have previously clerked for a U.S. senator who was particularly active in health care reform, it may make sense to mention your previous clerkship and what you learned about the legislative process in the context of health care. As the employer to which you are applying already has a copy of your resume, you should not summarize the contents of your resume in your cover letter. Instead, you should focus on complementing the information contained in your resume. Your resume will give your potential employer a sense of your formal qualifications, while your cover letter will complement these qualifications by explaining your relevant experiences and how they apply to the position for which you are applying. Finally, you should also review your writing sample to look for any issues that the employer brings up in his or her response to your cover letter. For example, if the employer suggests that you provide additional support for statements made in your writing sample, you should address this concern in your cover letter. While this information may not affect the employer’s decision to grant you an interview, it at least shows the employer that you are willing to listen to constructive criticism and work to improve your qualifications.
Obvious Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Legal Cover Letter
When applying for positions as a law clerk, summer associate or other roles in the legal field, you must ensure that your cover letter is flawless. In this guide, it’s important to note some of the most common mistakes that candidates make in their legal cover letters so that you can avoid these issues. One of the biggest problems applicants run into is generic language. If you are applying for a role in New York, for example, you don’t want your cover letter to look like a template or sounds like a form letter you copied from your neighbor’s computer screen. If you have ever received a sales call where the representative was clearly reading a script, know that you do not want your future employer to have the same experience. Another common mistake applicants make is spelling and grammar errors. Legal professionals must have a strong command of the English language and have the ability to express complex ideas in simple terms. A basic spelling error is a sign that you cannot be trusted to complete work that requires such an attention to detail, which could be a huge strike against your application. Some hiring managers may choose not to read beyond the first sentence if they see a glaring error in your cover letter, so bypassing the proofreading step could cost you the opportunity of a lifetime . The third issue is the lack of personalization in a cover letter. Your career path should be unique to you, which means that your cover letter should be too. If you are applying to a large firm, it can be difficult to find the name of a hiring manager or specific attorney in the practice group where you want to work, but do your best to track down a real person who is responsible for making hiring decisions. Sometimes using "Dear Hiring Manager" is acceptable for a cover letter, but when possible, you want to make your application package as personal as possible. If you aren’t sure how to find out who to address your letter to, consider calling the firm’s offices and asking. It’s not just what you say in your cover letter that matters, it’s also how you say it. If your message has a tone that doesn’t match the type of law you’re applying for, it could also be a major oversight that will cost you an interview. Mergers and acquisitions, for instance, typically requires more formal communication than personal injury law. In addition to adjusting your tone, you need to recognize your audience and get that tone right for the specific firms to which you are applying.
Legal Intern Cover Letter Sample and Analysis
We have provided a sample law internship cover letter below. We have also included some analysis of that legal internship cover letter.
Sample:
[Today’s Date]
[Employer’s Name]
[Employer’s Title]
[Company’s Name]
[Company’s Address]
[City, State ZIP Code]
Dear Mr./Ms./Dr. LAST NAME:
My name is RON WESTON, I will be attending UCLA School of Law in the Fall of 2010, and I am writing to express my interest in the Summer 2011 law clerk opening at your firm. Your legal internship in civil litigation appeals to me because I ultimately intend to work for a prestigious litigation firm. I will be working towards a specialization in civil litigation and will be seeking a position with litigation firms over the Internet and with alumni located in big cities interested in municipal law, or top litigation firms.
My previous employment as an as legal assistant for attorney RRY LAW FIRM in CityTown began my fascination with civil litigation. I had the opportunity to prove myself within the legal community by delivering service above and beyond the norm. My experience enabled me to proactively assist the legal assistants in thorough, timely research and continuous intercession of documents in an organized and efficient manner. It was my pleasure to work as part of a team in collaborating and problem solving. I was gradually given the responsibility of drafting demurrers and motions, case law research and assisting with mediation.
During my undergraduate studies as a political science major at UCLA, I interned at an animal shelter law nonprofit called the Center for Shelter Lawyers. I was a formal volunteer, where I screened potential client intakes and referred clients to their respective county shelters, where they could be seen as soon as possible. I was also done similar tasks for other law related employment opportunities for lawyers which made me reach out and nourish my legal hunger. I have found that I am passionate about researching law, educating others about their legal rights and protecting their interests.
I would be honored to discuss my qualifications at your convenience. I can be reached at [email protected] or (000) 000-0000.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
RON WESTON
END OF SAMPLE LETTER
Analysis of the legal internship cover letter sample
In this cover letter the writer has identified the target legal position, discussed their past experience that relates to that position and expressed an interest in that legal position.
How to Use Your Legal Intern Cover Letter Properly
When you are ready to submit your application, there are a number of ways of doing it and the best way usually depends on the type of legal intern position you are applying for.
In-house programs: Names like "Legal Scholars Program" or "Summer Associate Programs" are reserved for the most competitive law students and are typically the most difficult to secure at small law firms. They often require the submission of an online application (in addition to the cover letter, of course) that outlines your legal qualifications and interests. Many such firms will start hiring as early as three months in advance. For this reason, it’s critical that you research at the start of the law school year what firms you’d like to work for and what programs they offer. Cutting down the amount of time that you will spend writing cover letters will also make it easier to get the high-quality product you need out of each letter you write.
Mid-sized and larger law firms: Large law firms, tend to be more flexible , but they also tend to have much stricter quotas to fill for summer associate programs. To cover all bases, always follow the instructions regarding the submission of applications to the letter. If the firm has an online portal, use it. If it states on its website that a formal written application needs to be mailed or faxed somewhere, do that.
For mid-sized firms and public interest groups, emailing your application is becoming the new normal. Remember to name the files you send with your email application sensibly and identify the specific job you are applying for so that an internal assistant won’t misinterpret it as an application for something else.
Some public interest groups may also still request that you send your application in the mail and have very specific instructions regarding what they would like you to send. In these circumstances, send exactly what they ask for along with a professionally written cover letter and resume. Again, following the directions to the letter will signal to the employer that you are precise, detail-oriented and fully committed.