Joel Kim, '16, Named December's Pro Bono Volunteer of the Month
Editor's note: The Pro Bono Board, a student group committed to expanding pro bono knowledge and opportunities to students, names a Pro Bono Volunteer of the Month. The December honoree is Joel Kim,’16. Stephanie Spiro, a member of the board, wrote this story on his work. For more information on pro bono work, visit the Pro Bono Service Initiative website or contact Shehnaz Mansuri in the Office of Career Services.
Joel Kim,’16, who is December’s Pro Bono Volunteer of the Month, has dedicated himself to pro bono and public interest projects spanning multiple states and legal issues. Joel enrolled in the Law School in order to gain “specific skills to help people in a very tangible way.” A graduate of University of California at Berkeley with a degree in Forestry, he volunteered as a counselor for three years to provide emotional support for people in need. While Joel appreciated the opportunity to help his clients find community resources, he was frustrated that he couldn’t help them with the numerous legal challenges they faced. Joel saw a career in law as a powerful channel to make a difference in people’s lives.
Since starting law school, Joel has participated in Spring Break of Service, Lawyers in the Classroom, Chicago Law Foundation (CLF), the Mandel Legal Aid Clinic, the Clinic Student Board, the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), three summer internships at public interest legal organizations, and numerous one-off pro bono events.
As a 1L volunteer with Lawyers in the Classroom, Joel had fun teaching elementary students basic legal concepts. Through the Spring Break of Service, Joel went to the Mississippi Center for Justice in Biloxi as a 1L and to the Arch City Defenders in St. Louis as a 2L. He was thrilled to “get a deep dive into a specific organization and what they do” and “see different types of public interest work and what public interest looks like in different cities.” With IRAP, Joel has developed practical skills working with attorneys at law firms to help refugees acquire permission to come to the United States. As part of a one-day volunteer event at the National Immigrant Justice Center, he worked with an LLM student to help a Spanish-speaking client apply for a visa that allows undocumented immigrants who are the victims of violence remain in the United States.
To gain both transactional and litigation experience, Joel has worked with Law School students and faculty in the Housing Initiative Clinic and hopes to work with the Poverty and Housing Law Clinic next. Volunteering on the Clinic Student Board has enabled him to increase the Mandel Legal Aid Clinic’s profile at the Law School so students know “we have this amazing resource.” Joel has also held internship positions at public interest policy and legal aid organizations in Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, including LAF, the National Housing Law Project, and Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles. To support other students in their public interest endeavors, Joel fundraises for summer stipends as CLF’s president. Through coordinating a big auction and several merchandise sales, Joel has gained experience in areas that will prove helpful if he ever holds development or leadership roles at legal organizations in the future.
Joel has been impressed by his fellow students’ dedication to pro bono, whether they are going to work at law firms or public interest organizations. Joel is excited about “the amazing progress the school has made in terms of supporting public interest.”