Internship: Legislative Practicum

• Semester: Spring 2025
• Course ID: 497P
• Credit Hours: 4
• Unique: 29620

Special Instructions

Description

For more information about the Legislative Internship Program, see: https://law.utexas.edu/internships/legislative-internship/

The law school's proximity to the Texas Capitol affords a unique opportunity for students to gain experience working with legislative lawyers practicing in a number of settings where they participate in the governing process at the state level. Students will learn how legislatures respond to executive activity and judicial decisions, how executives control policy agendas and administrative agencies, and how judges read and interpret governing instruments. Texas has the second-largest population in the United States and its economy would rank 10th in the world if it were an independent country. The Legislative Internship provides students with direct involvement, from a number of institutional perspectives, as state government addresses the important public policy issues of the day.

Students engage in law-related work under the supervision of a legislative lawyer with at least two years’ experience. Students participate in a weekly seminar and conduct between 10-15 hours/week of fieldwork (at least 150 hours over the semester) at an approved placement with a state legislator (including legislative leaders such as the Speaker of the House or the Lieutenant Governor), a legislative committee, a legislative officer (such as the House or Senate Parliamentarian), or a legislative service agency (such as the Texas Legislative Council, the Legislative Budget Board, the Sunset Advisory Commission, or the State Auditor's Office). Course requirements also include academic readings, in-class exercises, and guest speakers; individual meetings with the instructor are scheduled as necessary during the semester. Students arrange a mutually convenient work schedule with their supervising lawyer.

This course will meet in person on Fridays but some class meetings may be held online via Zoom. This class may also meet at the Texas Capitol after the first class meeting, rather than the law school, to accommodate student work schedules and the legislative calendar.

Applying: An application (available on the program website) and instructor approval of both the placement and the supervisor are required prior to registration. Students may pursue their own placements and are strongly encouraged to contact Professor Brady to discuss possible placements.