Welcome!
This is the section of the Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division (GPSLD) Web page devoted entirely to law students.
Here you’ll find articles and information on topics such as loan repayment and forgiveness, legal careers in the public sector, and surviving law school. Look around, check out our publications...if you like what you see, join the Division for free!
You must be a member of the ABA to join GPSLD, but law student membership in the ABA is just $25 per year.
And Division membership is free for ABA law student members! Enroll today. (Law student members receive e-publications, so please be sure to include your email address when you join.)
You've found it: The latest on loan repayment assistance
Many public service minded law school graduates can't afford to take the jobs they want because of overwhelming student loan debt. Members of Congress and federal agencies are trying to ease the loan repayment burden for lawyers who enter public service.
*UPDATES* On Thursday, September 27, 2007, the President signed H.R. 2669, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, into law (Public Law 110-84). Both the House (292-97) and Senate (79-12) had voted to approve the act, including the income contingent loan forgiveness program for public service, on September 7, 2007.
Under this program, the federal government will forgive the balance (including interest) of qualifying student loans for lawyers who provide “public interest law services”— including prosecution or public defense or legal advocacy in low-income communities at a nonprofit organization — or who are employed by a 501(c)(3) organization — after 120 timely income contingent repayments and 10 years of public service.
The act also offers borrowers another repayment option. During the period of repayment, borrowers of most federal and federally-backed loans may use the new Income Based Repayment Option to repay their loans at just 15 percent of their discretionary income, defined as their gross income minus 150 percent of the poverty line. The bill now awaits the President’s signature. (The full text of the bill is available online at http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas.html.) H.R. 2669 passed in the house on July 11, 2007 by a vote of 273-149; it passed the Senate on July 20 by a vote of 78-18. See the linked article below for background information.
On July 24, 2007, the Senate unanimously passed S.1642, a bill that reauthorizes the Higher Education Act (HEA) and includes provisions from the John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act of 2007 (H.R. 916 and S.442) and a loan repayment program for civil legal assistance attorneys (first introduced by Sen. Tom Harkin in S.1167). This bill has not yet been voted on in the House.
Meet the Division's Law Student Liaison
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My name is Sunita Krishna and I serve as the American Bar Association's Government and Public Sector Law Student Liaison for the 2007-2008 bar year. I hold a Masters in Government from Johns Hopkins University, and I am currently a third year student at the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law.
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THE BENEFITS OF DIVISION MEMBERSHIP
- Free enrollment -- you've got nothing to lose
- Post comments and questions and receive helpful information on the Division's members-only Law Student e-mail discussion list
- Access to the Public Lawyer Career Center
- Receive the Division's publications by e-mail
- Talk with a mentor
- Get involved in committees which consider areas of specific interest to public lawyers
- Send us your article ideas and get published
- Networking through the Division-wide e-mail discussion list and Division meetings
- Send us an e-mail and let us know what we can do for you: GPSLD@abanet.org
E-Mail Discussion for Law Students
Student members of the GPSLD have full access to our Law Student E-mail Discussion List. We created this forum to give our law student members a place to ask and answer questions, and to share advice and opportunities with other law students. As a member of the list, you will receive timely notification of internship and job opportunities, as well as information about starting your job search.
Looking for a legal job with the federal government?
Need help figuring out which form to submit? Or what needs to be on your résumé? Want a better understanding of pay grades? Or advice from government lawyers on finding a job? Take a look at the 2007-2008 Federal Legal Employment Opportunities Guide. This handy resource was produced by the National Association for Law Placement, the Partnership for Public Service, and the Division. It's a great resource for federal jobseekers, and it's free!
ABA MEMBERSHIP AND ITS BENEFITS
- Discounts on specialized study Kaplan-PMBR bar review courses
- BAR/BRI bar review course scholarship opportunity
- Subscription to ABA Journal and Student Lawyer magazine
- Discounts on Career Series publications
- Valuable ABA Career Counsel resources at www.abanet.org/careercounsel
More ABA Law Student Membership Benefits
Visit the ABA Law Student Division's Web page: Learn about the benefits of joining the ABA as a law student member, identify ABA leadership opportunities, meet law students with similar professional and academic interests, and join efforts to strengthen legal education and to help make law school and public interest work affordable.
To join the ABA, simply do one of the following:
Call the ABA Service Center at 1-800-285-2221, or
Complete the online ABA Law Student Membership Application at https://www.abanet.org/join/lsd_enroll/ls_enroll.cfm.
