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Pathways to the Profession: Steven Mills L’19

September 07, 2017

Steven Mills L'19 spent his summer as a litigation intern at the ACLU of Northern California.
Steven Mills L'19 spent his summer as a litigation intern at the ACLU of Northern California.
In this dispatch, Steven Mills L’19 describes his summer litigation internship at the ACLU of Northern California.

Editor’s Note: Each summer Penn Law students hone their skills through a wide array of private and public sector internships across the country and around the world. Generous financial support and fellowships for international and public interest work enable students to pursue diverse assignments in the United States and abroad. This post from Steven Mills L’19 is one in a series of firsthand accounts detailing how students’ summer employment opportunities are preparing them for their legal careers. 

Mills is from San Leandro, California, and he hopes to become a civil rights litigator.

As a first-generation college graduate, education policy shaped me. Coming into law school, I had a strong interest in education law and civil rights litigation, and I knew that Penn Law had many opportunities for me to explore my interests and grow as an advocate. I participated in the Williams Institute Moot Court focusing on sexual orientation and gender rights, I volunteered with the James Wilson Project to teach local high school students, and I co-founded Penn Law First Generation Professionals as an affinity group for first generation college graduates or professionals.

Ultimately, I wanted to find a summer opportunity that would challenge me critically and analytically while exposing me to legal professionals doing impact litigation. News stories about the ACLU’s impact and CP&P’s posting of an internship with the ACLU of Northern California confirmed that the ACLU was where I wanted to work. I am very grateful for the privilege I was provided to work with the ACLU of Northern California advocating for the advancement and protection of civil liberties and for Morgan Lewis for sponsoring my summer public interest fellowship.

I was a litigation intern in the Legal-Policy Department and supported current and prospective litigation. The cases involved individuals being denied contraception for religious reasons, discriminatory dress codes in school settings, informal diversion programs infringing minor’s fundamental rights, and the treatment of unaccompanied minors entering the country. I got to research nuanced legal issues, prepare memoranda, and attend strategy sessions with seasoned litigators and policy-analysts.

One of the highlights of the internship was a weekend trip into California’s Central Valley to assess the needs of a disadvantaged unincorporated community. Certain unincorporated communities are not provided access to public utilities and drinkable water — a human right that the California Constitution recognizes. The ACLU of Northern California partners with local community organizations to survey community members about the resources they do have access to. This type of information allows the ACLU to gain insight into the specific needs of the community to better advocate with the legislature and within the court system. Speaking in depth with community members about the hardships they face and hearing their excitement because they get to be heard proved that legal advocacy should be proactive.

All of my 1L courses helped prepare me for this summer. For instance, Legal Practice Skills taught me how to research nuanced legal issues and prepare objective and persuasive memoranda. My understanding of Admin Law and Civil Procedure allowed me to determine whether religious denials are arbitrary and capricious in writ proceedings. Criminal Law statutory interpretation unveiled the legislature’s intention in creating informal diversion programs for minors, and Constitutional Law taught me what type of limits this program must adhere too.

Ultimately, my time at the ACLU forced me to think critically and strategically about social issues and civil liberties at a time where many think they are under attack. I hope to continue employing these skills as I learn more about the law and become a litigator.

- Steven Mills

 

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