Externships

• Completion of a minimum of 28 hours of credit at an ABA-approved law school
• Concurrent enrollment in or prior completion of Issues in Professionalism (2 credits)
• Approval of placement by Director of Externships

Students participating in their first semester as an extern OR a licensed legal intern must take this class in addition to enrolling in Extern Placement. (The Issues in Professionalism class does not count toward the six-hour Experiential Learning requirement.) 

Three-credit externships requires a student to spend a minimum of 140 hours a semester at the placement. Externs who exceed the 140-hour requirement can submit the additional hours for pro bono credit through OU’s Students Access to Justice program.

Students may receive credit for up to two semesters of extern placement at different placements. 

During the summer semester, students are able to work in placements outside of the Norman and Oklahoma City areas, allowing students to either return to their home communities or explore new cities. Externs have worked in many places including Florida, California, Maryland, Texas, Colorado, Nevada, Washington, D.C., and Johannesburg, South Africa.

This clinical program allows students to work one semester for federal attorneys engaged in Indian law litigation and policymaking in Washington, D.C. Students have interned at the United States Department of Justice and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Interns are expected to participate in weekly substantive presentations and meetings on significant litigation and policy matters and are required to complete two independent writing projects. By application only.

Students who have completed the Federal Indian Law and/or International Law courses are eligible to participate in a 12-hour-credit Inter-American Human Rights Commission Externship, working at the commission as a part of the Indigenous Rapporteurship team.

Native American tribal judiciaries are also among available judicial externship opportunities.

Selected students have the opportunity to work in a judge’s chambers, gaining experience in legal research and writing. Placement is based on academic records, writing samples, faculty references, and personal interviews.

Recent judicial placements include:

• United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma
• Oklahoma Supreme Court
• Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals
• Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals
• Oklahoma County Oklahoma District Court
• United States District Court for the District of Nevada
• United States District Court for the District of North Dakota
• Texas Court of Civil Appeals
• Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Texas
• Bankruptcy Court, Western District of Oklahoma
• Dallas County Texas Family District Court
• Cleveland County Oklahoma District Court

Accepted students are paired with governmental agencies or non-profit organizations to allow them to learn about representation of clients, the demands of practice, and ethical obligations.

Recent governmental and non-profit agency placements include:

• Representative David D. Boren’s Office
• Cleveland County D.A.’s Office
• Oklahoma County Public Defender’s Office
• City of Norman
• Oklahoma Bar Association
• Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations
• Tinker A.F.B.
• Ft. Sill A.F.B.
• Texas - Dallas County D.A.’s Office
• Texas - Dallas County Public Defender’s Office
• Equality Federation
• Federal Public Defender’s Office
• Georgia - Office of Fulton County District Attorney
• Oklahoma Insurance Department
• Legal Aid of N.W. Texas
• Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma – Tulsa
• Legal Aid Services of Hawaii
• Missouri - Jackson County D.A.’s Office
• Maryland - Office of Attorney General
• Texas - Montgomery County D.A.’s Office
• Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office
• Oklahoma Corporation Commission
• Oklahoma County D.A.’s Office
• Civil Division; Homicide Division
• Oklahoma County Public Defender’s Office
• Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry
• Oklahoma Indian Legal Services, Inc.
• Oklahoma Indigent Defense System (OIDS)
• Oklahoma State House of Representative
• Oklahoma Water Resource Board
• Oklahoma Pardon & Parole Board
• Denver - United States Attorney’s Office
• United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Oklahoma
• University of Oklahoma Athletic Compliance Office
• Pennsylvania - Westmoreland County D.A.’s Office
• U.S. Department of State & U.S. Embassies Abroad

Many courts now require parties to a lawsuit to participate in a mediation. Through this externship program, students receive training to become a mediator and gain a better understanding of the mediation process. In collaboration with the Oklahoma Supreme Court Early Settlement Program, students qualify for certification by the Supreme Court as a volunteer mediator and conduct mediations in Cleveland County and Norman Municipal Courts.