To apply for our FALL 2024, SPRING 2025, OR SUMMER 2025  programs, please send the following to Irene A. Pai at volunteercoordinator@ocpubdef.com : 

1. Cover Letter explaining why you want to volunteer at the Orange County Public Defender’s Office
   1. In the cover letter, please include your best estimate of the date range and your days/timeframe of availability (Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. – 12, 1:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.) understanding that your academic schedule is not yet finalized.  
2. Resume
3. Unofficial Transcript
4. Writing Sample which is simply any writing that exemplifies your writing.
5. If applicable, your AB 2830* attestation AB 2830 Intern Applicant Supplemental Information Form 2024 . This is applicable if you have previously been a

• foster youth, homeless youth, formerly homeless youth (at any age before 26 years old), or
• a formerly incarcerated youth (at any age before 21 years old in Juvenile Hall or the custody of, the Division of Adult Operations in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, or county jail and released from that incarceration or custody before the individual attained 21 years of age.)

*California Government Code section 31000.11. (a) Each county shall develop a program that gives a preference to qualified applicants who are members of a disadvantaged group for the hiring of internship and student positions. The county shall determine the criteria for county agencies to participate in the program in accordance with this section.

(b) Any application for an internship or student assistant position with a county agency participating in the hiring preference program shall allow the applicant to identify that the applicant is eligible for a preference under this section, but the application shall not require the applicant to identify the specific category that entitles him or her for eligibility.

(c) The preferred selection process shall include an assessment of the applicant’s ability to perform the duties of the desired position.

(d) For the purpose of this section, the following terms apply:

(1) “Disadvantaged groups” includes, but is not limited to, foster youth, homeless youth, formerly homeless youth, and formerly incarcerated youth.

(2) “Foster youth” means any individual who meets, or has ever met, either of the following criteria:

(A) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and was removed from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 319 or 361 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(B) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to Section 602 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and was removed from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 727 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(3) “Homeless youth” means an applicant up to 26 years of age who has been verified as a homeless child or youth, as defined in subsection (2) of Section 725 of the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 11434a(2)), by a homeless services provider, as defined in paragraph (3) of subdivision (d) of Section 103577 of the Health and Safety Code.

(4) “Formerly homeless youth” means an individual up to 26 years of age who was previously a homeless youth.

(5) “Formerly incarcerated youth” means an individual who has been sentenced to be incarcerated in, or in the custody of, the Division of Adult Operations in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, or county jail and released from that incarceration or custody before the individual attained 21 years of age.

(6) “Preference” means priority over similarly qualified applicants for placement in the position.

(e) Nothing in this section creates a right to, or hiring preference for, a permanent civil service position.

(f) This section shall not apply to a charter county.

(Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 878, Sec. 1. (AB 2830) Effective January 1, 2019.)

The Orange County Office of the Public Defender’s Volunteer Student Program has become a highly-regarded volunteer opportunity for interested Law Students (1L, 2L, 3L, LLM, and Post-Bar’s) and responsible, thoughtful, conscientious undergraduates. Our volunteers come from law schools and undergraduate institutions from across the nation (e.g., Georgetown Law, George Washington University Law, Harvard Law and Yale, Cornell, Columbia) as well as robust local representation (e.g., UCI Law, UCLA Law, USC Gould, Berkeley Law, Chapman Law, Stanford, Claremont-McKenna, Scripps, Pitzer, USC, UCLA, and Trinity Law).

Our Program provides undergraduate students, law students and post-graduate and post-bar law students an unparalleled opportunity to observe the day-to-day life of a working public defender through a variety of placements in our office. Volunteers at our office have access to a variety of assignments working with attorneys who handle the most serious felony criminal cases in our county including death penalty, sex offenses, and homicides.

Successful past volunteer law students, post-bar graduates, undergraduates and post-graduate students were highly-motivated, demonstrated initiative, maintained the highest ethical standards with regard to confidentiality of the case details and conversations, and understood the mission and objective of the Public Defender to provide the highest quality defense to each appointed criminal defendant.

Those who enter the volunteer program most often find the experience to be intense and meaningful. Feedback from past volunteer student interns consistently state that “the experience gave me a realistic preview of being a deputy public defender” and “I have a better understanding of concepts, theories and skills required to be a superb defense attorney.”

An ideal candidate for this volunteer student program would be one who possesses an understanding of the work of the Public Defender, a strong academic background, a strong work ethic and the ability to work independently yet ask questions when needed. Our office is an equal opportunity employer that affirmatively seeks interns of varied ethnic and cultural backgrounds as well as those with bilingual language skills .

TO APPLY AS A LAW STUDENT, LLM, POST-BAR, OR UNDERGRADUATE

IF YOU ARE A POST-BAR GRADUATE (i.e., you are a law student who has graduated law school and will be taking the Bar Exam)

• Please send a cover letter explaining why you want to spend your Post-Bar period with the Orange County Public Defender and include your hours of availability,

• your unofficial law school transcript,

• resume,

• writing sample, and

• an AB 2830 Intern Applicant Supplemental Information Form (if applicable)

• to irene.pai@pubdef.ocgov.com

APPLICATIONS ARE ACCEPTED CONTINUOUSLY FROM THE BEGINNING OF YOUR 3L YEAR. 

IN THE EMAIL, PLEASE NOTE WHETHER THERE IS TIME URGENCY FOR YOUR INTERVIEW.  

IF YOU ARE A LAW STUDENT (1L, 2L, 3L, LLM)

• Please send a cover letter explaining why you want to volunteer at the Orange County Public Defender with your beginning and end dates and hours of availability,

• your unofficial law school transcript,

• resume,

• writing sample and

• an AB 2830 Intern Applicant Supplemental Information Form (if applicable)

• to irene.pai@pubdef.ocgov.com

• To volunteer for the Summer session, please apply in the December of the year prior.

• To volunteer for the FALL semester, please apply in July.

• To volunteer for the SPRING semester, please apply in the November prior.

IF YOU ARE AN UNDERGRADUATE with a strong academic record and passion to assist indigent criminal defendants

• Please send a cover letter explaining why you want to volunteer at the Orange County Public Defender with your beginning and ending dates and hours of availability,

• your unofficial college or university school transcripts,

• resume,

• writing sample and

• an AB 2830 Intern Applicant Supplemental Information Form (if applicable) to irene.pai@pubdef.ocgov.com

Application Materials for applicants who are not extended an interview will be forwarded to the Undergraduate Volunteer Program

• For Summer, please apply in December.

IF YOU ARE AN UNDERGRADUATE with an average academic record but a passion to assist indigent criminal defendants

• Please send a cover letter explaining why you want to volunteer at the Orange County Public Defender with your beginning and ending dates and hours of availability,

• your unofficial college or university transcripts,

• resume, and

• AB 2830 Intern Applicant Supplemental Information Form (if applicable) to VolunteerHR@pubdef.ocgov.com. This is a Rolling Application period (applications are accepted throughout the year.)

• Alumni from our Undergraduate Honors Program have gone onto the most highly-regarded law schools in the nation including UCI Law, Yale Law, Harvard Law, Stanford Law, Berkeley Law, USC Gould, UCLA Law, Santa Clara, USD, USF, Thomas Jefferson, Chapman Law, and others

• ALL positions are unpaid and volunteer.

• Students are encouraged to seek Externship credits, Fellowships, or pursue School Funding.

• Parking submitted timely is reimbursed, but no other costs (including those associated with remote work) are reimbursed by the Orange County Public Defender.

If you have additional questions, please email Youn Lee at VolunteerHR@pubdef.ocgov.com.

Volunteer Students may be placed in the following departments based on office need:

Branch Court Offices

Law Student Volunteers may be placed in a Branch Court office throughout the County (i.e., West, Harbor, North, and Central) where you will work with misdemeanor attorneys and/or felony attorneys.  Law Student Volunteers in a branch court, which is a fast-paced, hectic environment, should demonstrate not only a commitment to the indigent, but also organization, creativity and initiative.  While in the Branch Court, the volunteer may interact with clients, assist with case organization and research, listen to and view body worn camera video, prepare motions and other written documents for the benefit of clients and attend a variety of court hearings up to and including preliminary examinations, 1538.5 motions, and/or jury trials depending on the intern’s availability.  Volunteer law students may be placed in the Felony Panel in the main office in Santa Ana in which the volunteer will assist attorneys who handle the most serious felony cases in the County.  As a volunteer in the Felony Panel, there is no free parking, although past volunteers have researched and discovered some streets with free parking that are within walking distance.  Volunteer law students on the Felony Panel should demonstrate not only a commitment to the indigent, but also organization, strong legal research and writing skills and initiative. Volunteer law students on the Felony Panel assist with case organization and research, listen to and view law enforcement recordings including body worn camera video, 911 calls, witness interviews, and prepare motions and other written documents for the benefit of clients.  They may, at times, accompany the attorney to crime scenes, and may attend court hearings leading up to and including preliminary examinations, and/or jury trials depending on the volunteer law student’s availability. 

Felony Panel Units
801 Civic Center Drive West, Suite 400, Santa Ana, CA  92701

Volunteer students working in the Felony Panel unit in Santa Ana will be assigned to work with two experienced trial attorneys to assist in the defense of the most serious and violent felonies.  Volunteers will be expected to synthesize and organize voluminous discovery, 911 recordings, body worn camera recordings and provide the attorneys with their opinions and conclusions.  They will attend court with their assigned attorneys to observe trial attorneys’ interactions with opposing counsel and negotiations with judges, as well as to interact with clients and their family members in the courthouse.  Law Student volunteers will assist Felony Panel attorneys with legal research and writing of trial briefs as well as issues that pop up during the jury trial.  Volunteers will accompany trial attorneys to court during jury trials and take notes of witnesses, observe jury reactions, and provide the attorneys with their opinions and observations.  Volunteers with felony panel attorneys will be considered a member of the defense team. 

Writs & Appeals Unit
801 Civic Center Drive West, Suite 400, Santa Ana, CA  92701

Volunteer law students working in the Writs & Appeals unit in the main office in Santa Ana will assist attorneys with the research and writing of appeals as well as writs of habeas corpus. You will also help draft a variety of legal motions the Public Defender regularly files in the Superior Courts, such as motions to suppress evidence due to unlawful police activity, as well as Penal Code section 995 motions.  

Some of the legal issues you may work on include evolving areas of constitutional law with statewide, and even national, significance. Student should have strong research and writing skills and work well with firm deadlines; you will receive guidance and feedback. As a volunteer in the W&A unit, there is no free parking, although past volunteer law students have researched and discovered some streets with free parking that are within walking distance.  Volunteer law students in W&A must demonstrate excellent research and writing skills, be organized and work well with firm deadlines.  Volunteer law students will assist with case organization and research, review and summarize lengthy reporters’ transcripts, synthesize facts from the transcripts and police reports, and draft motions.  They may accompany attorneys to the crime scene and may attend the litigation of the motions. 

Juvenile Court – Juvenile Delinquency and Juvenile Dependency
341 The City Drive, Suite 307, Orange, CA  92868

Volunteer law students may be placed in the Juvenile Court in Orange in which the volunteer law student will assist attorneys in the Delinquency or Dependency Units. As a volunteer law student in Juvenile unit, you will have to pay for parking as there is scant free parking at Juvenile Court. In the Juvenile Delinquency unit, you will assist attorneys helping minors who are charged with crimes. Volunteer law students will assist with case organization and research, listen to and view law enforcement recordings, prepare motions and other written documents for the benefit of clients and, at times, may accompany the attorney to crime scenes, and may attend court hearings depending on the volunteer law student’s availability. 

As a Juvenile Dependency volunteer law student, you will assist attorneys helping parents reunify with their children who came into the system because of allegations of neglect or abuse. Volunteer law students will assist with researching and drafting a variety of motions, case organization, trial preparation, and may accompany the attorney to client meetings and court hearings. The Juvenile Dependency unit also has a section that files writs in the Court of Appeals challenging court orders as well as the actions of the Social Services Agency. Students interested in working with this section should demonstrate the qualities outlined in the Writs and Appeals section above.

Collaborative Courts – Homeless Outreach Court, Veterans Court, Drug/DUI Court
Community Court 909 N. Main Street, Santa Ana, CA  92701

Volunteer Law students may be placed in collaborative courts working with veterans, homeless and mentally ill clients to assist them in addressing their underlying issues through a team approach to decision making. 

Mental Health Unit, Sexually Violent Predator Unit
200 West Santa Ana Blvd., Suite 970, Santa Ana, CA  92701

Attorneys in the mental health unit represent clients in a wide range of legal practice areas.  Some practice areas have significant overlap with the criminal justice system. We represent clients on Conservatorship matters governed by the Probate Code and those arising from the Lanterman-Petris Act (LPS).  LPS clients are involuntarily committed to mental health facilities and are entitled to civil jury trials to determine if they are or continue to be “gravely disabled.  Attorneys also represent clients committed through a finding of “Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity” (NGRI)  and clients that are facing petitions under the “Mentally Disordered Offender” (MDO) statute.  We also have three attorneys dedicated to representing clients who the state seeks to commit or has committed as “Sexually Violent Predators” (SVP).  If you are interested in mental health issues, this is the place for you. We will try to match you with the practice area that meets your interests.  With respect to SVP work, we are looking for individuals that have the disposition and aptitude for tackling the challenging and complex subject matter.