Students may only extern at government or non-profit organizations and agencies.听 Law firms and private organizations who would like to employ the services of our students are encouraged to employ them for wages.

  • Each law student extern must have a field supervisor who is a licensed attorney or judge at a government agency or non-profit organization.
  • Field supervisors must agree to supervise the law student intern's work product, provide substantive feedback, and meet with the student on a regular basis.
  • As part of the law student extern's application for credit, field supervisors are required to provide a resume, business address, and business phone number. A printout from a web page that verifies the field supervisor's attorney status is sufficient.
  • Employers must be able to provide the law student extern with the amount of work hours necessary to fulfill the credit hours the student is seeking. Law student externs may earn up to four credits for an externship.
    • 2 Credits = 100 Work Hours
    • 3 Credits = 150 Work Hours
    • 4 Credits = 200 Work Hours
  • Due to a change to the Law School Rules, as of Summer 2023, employers are now permitted but not required to compensate law student externs for their labor
  • The student's work must be legal in nature and have a substantial writing component. Acceptable writing pieces include:
    • compositions which are reviewed and critiqued;
    • legal memoranda and briefs which are a significant part of the work and that show legal research, analysis, and reasoning;
    • interrogatories, pleadings, correspondence and non-legal memoranda normally are not sufficient.
  • At the end of the semester, field supervisors are required to provide a completed Field Supervisor Externship Report. Field Supervisors must also provide each law student extern with an oral review evaluating the student's performance and work product.

When are the deadlines for hiring law student externs?
Due to the paperwork associated with externships and the law school registration deadlines, students must have all externship paperwork handed in by the first day of classes for each semester. If students miss this deadline they will not be able to receive credit for the externship.

Can a field supervisor provide supervision to more than one law student extern in the same semester?
Due to the time commitment, field supervisors generally supervise only one student however, exceptions can be made.

Can more than one attorney or judge supervise a law student extern?
Students are permitted to work with various members of the office, but due to law school rules one person must be designated as the extern's supervisor.

How far in advance should an employer post an externship opportunity?
Students typically begin looking for externships in the semester before they will be working for an employer. Therefore, it is best to post positions by October/November for Spring externships, February/March for Summer externships, and July/August for Fall externships.

What should an employer who wants to post an externship do?
Read about the externship program on the baby直播app Law website, email lawexternships@colorado.edu, and then complete the .