Law Commitment
Legal Services E-lert
Bibliographic Info:
Author: Adrienne Drell
Source: Chicago Sun-Times
Date: 7/16/2000
Article reports, "[I]t’s not easy finding a job assisting the less fortunate. As a result of congressional cutbacks, competition for the relatively few positions in the public interest sector is far more fierce than that for six-digit starting salary positions at law firms." LSC-funded Legal Assistance Foundation of Chicago Deputy Director Alan Alop says, "We’ve had more than 200 applications for just 10 positions, and the applicants were from some of the finest law schools." Recent law school graduate Linella Lim Gavin, an attorney with the AIDS Legal Council of Chicago, says, "A lot of people think these jobs are extremely easy to get because they are so low paying. In truth, everyone is fighting for even the lowest paying positions in public service." Article says many law firms that once encouraged associates to spend billable hours doing pro bono work now "can’t afford" to let highly paid lawyers work for free because of soaring starting salaries. Adrienne Drell, Law Commitment, Chic. Sun-Times, July 16, 2000, www.suntimes.com/outpost/sweet/law16.html.