Summer 2022 Legal Internship Program

The Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission 2022 summer legal interns, from left to right: Ryen Lim, Naya Brown-Yohay, Tracy Acquan, and Colin Grimm.

The Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission hosted its second annual Summer Legal Internship Program from June 1, 2022, to July 29, 2022. The goal of the internship program is to educate interns about the legal profession and the Commission’s mission to make the court system more responsive to the concerns of people of color and improve diversity in the legal profession and court system. From the outset, interns were paired with a member of the Commission Legal Staff to receive mentorship on their research and writing projects. Over the course of eight weeks, the interns have participated in drafting court decisions, observed courtroom observations, and met with attorneys and judges in the following areas:

• Family Court/IDV
• Legal Research and Writing/Appellate Court
• Criminal Court/Treatment Courts
• Citations in Legal Writing
• Mental Health and Resiliency/Housing Court
• Surrogate Court
• Alternative Dispute Resolution, Negotiation and Mediation
• Supreme Court—Implicit Bias
• Court of Claims; and
• Private Practice

On July 25, 2022, the Commission held a Closing Ceremony for its 2022 Summer Legal Interns in Albany, NY. During the morning, the interns toured the Court of Appeals, learning about the courts’ rich history, most recent cases, clerkship opportunities, and clerk positions with the Court’s Central Legal Research Staff. Thereafter, the Commission held a hybrid-closing ceremony where the interns provided remarks discussing their experience this summer. Some of the valuable takeaways described included the Symposium on Race, drafting decisions for the court, and observing courtroom proceedings. In addition, the interns noted that they are leaving this internship feeling more confident, a sense of transformation, and gratitude for the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission.

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