Summer Program

Application Process and Deadlines

We will begin accepting applications from current 1Ls (class of 2014) on December 1, 2011. The deadline for submitting materials for our 2012 summer program is January 17, 2012.  Interviewees will be selected by mid-February.

To apply for the EGH summer program, please e-mail a cover letter, resume, writing sample and transcript, preferably in PDF format, to James Hash.  Please type Summer Program Application in the Subject line.

Alternatively, materials can be mailed to the attention of James Hash at P.O. Box 911, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27602.  We have no preference for either e-mail or U.S. Mail, but please only send your materials one time.

Please note that we are not able to reimburse candidates for travel to and from Raleigh.   

Overview

Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP hires one or two law students each year as summer associates.  Summer associates work alongside our attorneys and gain exposure to all areas of our practice.

We attempt to provide each summer associate with experience in drafting pleadings, discovery requests and responses, client correspondence, and legal memoranda.  Our summer associates routinely accompany attorneys to hearings, depositions and client meetings.  We hope that by the end of the summer each law student will have an accurate picture of life as an attorney at a small law firm.

In summer 2012, we will continue to gear our summer associate program primarily towards rising second-year (class of 2014) law students. 

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We hope that law students who participate in the summer program will increase their understanding concerning:

How lawyers affect people’s lives.
How lawyers affect their communities.
How lawyers deal with each other as members of a profession.
How to deal effectively with clients, staff and lawyers.
Whether private practice in a small law firm is a good career option.

1. Provide summer associates with a realistic experience as a young attorney in a small law firm with a limited but varied practice.
2. Provide summer associates with as many different types of experiences as possible, including various stages of litigation in state, federal, trial and appellate courts and, to a more limited extent, experience in non-litigation matters.
3. Provide summer associates not only with the opportunity to experience the technical aspects of the law but also stress the importance of practicing law with integrity and using their legal skills to make a difference in the community.
4. Provide summer associates the opportunity to work with most, preferably all, attorneys, paralegals and administrative assistants in the office.
5. Provide summer associates with prompt feedback on all significant assignments.
6. Expect summer associates to be diligent, enthusiastic and innovative as a member of the team serving the firm’s clients.
7. Expect summer associates to have, or be able to quickly acquire, the core technology competency skills required of other attorneys, such as proficiency in doing both book-based and computer-assisted legal research and basic word processing functions.
8. Extend offers of employment, when positions become available, to those individuals who are positively evaluated. Although positions open less frequently than in larger firms and organizations, Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP is committed to giving former summer associates, with favorable evaluations, priority when an opening does become available.
9. Assist summer associates in making contacts with other members of the legal community, such as other lawyers and judges, for the purpose of both demonstrating the importance of knowing others in the profession and, if necessary, aiding the associate in obtaining permanent employment.
10. Expect summer associates to follow the firm’s Statement of Principles.

 

Why is the Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP Summer Program geared toward rising second-years (current first-years)?
We view our summer program as an opportunity for law students to get a glimpse of life in a small law firm. Although Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP occasionally hires new attorneys, we do not hire associates every year. By gearing the summer program to rising 2Ls (current 1Ls), summer associates are free to use their second summer to pursue a clerkship that is more likely to lead to permanent employment.

Can I expect a permanent job offer after clerking at Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP?
Probably not. We are a small firm, and at present we are not looking to grow. However, when Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP does have a need for an associate attorney, former summer clerks are almost always the first candidates considered. Additionally, for those seeking permanent positions in Raleigh, a summer at Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP presents excellent networking opportunities within the legal community.

Does Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP interview at my law school?
No. We have always found that we get plenty of well qualified applicants without going through the on-campus interviewing process.

Do you have a GPA cutoff or requirement?
No. Grades are only a very small part of our evaluation process and are not determinative. We expect our lawyers to produce excellent work product, but we view grades as only one indicator of the ability to do that.

Can I “split” my summer?
This is determined on a case-by-case basis and depends largely on available office space. A “half summer” is usually six to eight weeks, and a full summer is usually 12 weeks.

How are Everett Gaskins Hancock LLP summer associates compensated?
Summer associates receive a weekly salary. Additionally, EGH will provide each summer associate with parking within walking distance of our office for the duration of the clerkship.