Program Description
To address the shortage of attorneys in rural areas of Illinois, in 2020 the ISBA Special Committee on the Rural Practice Initiative created two complementary programs.
- The Rural Practice Summer Fellows program aims to connect law students with rural practitioners and to give them a taste of rural practice before they leave law school. The program includes a $5,000 fellowship grant and mentoring.
- The Rural Practice Associate Fellows program aims to place graduating law students and attorneys as permanent associates with rural practitioners. The program includes a $5,000 stipend at the beginning of employment, and an additional $5,000 stipend if the associate is still working for the same firm after one year.
These programs provide benefits to both the fellows and the lawyers who oversee them.
Program Benefits
For Fellows
- Assistance identifying job placements in rural communities.
- Stipend paid directly to you to augment your salary. The ISBA will provide:
- Stipend of $5,000 for summer clerks;
- Stipend of $10,000 for associates to be paid $5,000 at the beginning of the fellowship and $5,000 to be paid after successful completion of the first year of the fellowship.
- You will be provided numerous opportunities to network and develop meaningful relationships with others in the rural legal and business community, including introductions to good rural clients and other business opportunities.
- This program will provide training and other resources for rural practitioners. Fellows admitted to practice will also receive MCLE credit for qualifying programs.
For Rural Firms Employing a Fellow
- Attorneys admitted to practice will receive MCLE credit in connection with the program.
- Assistance in identifying and hiring summer clerks and associates.
- Access to high-quality training and support to help integrate a Fellow into your business.
- Subsidize the salary you can pay so you can attract high-quality employees. Stipends will be paid directly to the Fellows who are selected for the Rural Practice Fellowship Program.
- Stipend of $5,000 paid to summer clerks;
- Stipend of $10,000 paid to associates ($5,000 at the beginning of the Program and $5,000 to be paid to the associate after successful completion of the first year of the Program).
About the Application and Selection Process
To qualify for inclusion in the Rural Practice Fellowship Program a firm must hire a fellow to work at an office in a rural county of Illinois or qualify for an exception. This includes all Illinois counties except: Cook, Will, DuPage, Lake, Sangamon, St. Clair, Madison, Peoria, Champaign, McLean, and Winnebago.
Only private rural law firms are eligible to apply to the Rural Practice Fellowship Program. The application should be completed by the attorney in the rural firm who would be the primary supervisors of a Fellow (law clerk or associate attorney), if the firm is selected for the program.
Licensed Illinois lawyers and current/graduating law students are eligible to apply to receive a Fellowship (law clerk or associate attorney).
Each year, applications open in late August and are due in mid-September.
After the application deadline passes, Fellow applications will be matched with Rural Firm Applications by geographical location. Potential matches (contact information and materials) will be sent to both Fellow and Firm applicants during the first two weeks of October.
All applicants are required to attend the Applicant Speed Networking Sessions for all regions selected in their applications. The sessions are held via Zoom and will be scheduled the week after potential matches are sent to all applicants. Applicants will be able to meet each potentially matched Fellow/Rural Firm during this time.
The Fellowship interview period then runs to the end of October. During this period, potentially matched Fellows and Firms should communicate, schedule, and hold formal job interviews. Employment offers should be made, accepted, and reported to the ISBA at the end of October.
All accepted job offers will then be reviewed by the Rural Practice Fellowship Committee, and Fellows will be selected and announced the in mid-November.
The Summer Clerk Fellowship Program begins in late May/early June and ends in late July/early August.
The Associate Fellowship Program is one year, August to August.
Program Requirements and Terms
For Fellows
All Program requirements and terms are contained in a Fellowship and Stipend Agreement which must be signed by each selected Fellow prior to beginning the Program.
See Sample Fellowship and Stipend Agreements for Program Requirements and Terms
For Rural Firms
To be eligible to employ a Fellow through the Rural Practice Fellowship Program, the following requirements must be met:
- Supervising Attorney(s) must:
- Be registered as active and in good standing on the Illinois ARDC Master Roll of Attorneys and not the subject of an open ethics inquiry or disciplinary action in any state or jurisdiction;
- Not have ever been suspended or disbarred from the practice of law in any state or jurisdiction;
- Have been admitted to practice for five years or more unless an exception is granted by the Rural Practice Fellowship Committee;
- Be located in the same physical office as the Fellow unless an exception is granted by the Rural Practice Fellowship Committee; and
- Participate in all required Rural Practice Fellowship training and events.
- Supervising Attorney(s) and all other firm members must:
- Be active ISBA members or become members of the ISBA to participate in the Rural Practice Fellowship Program; and
- Provide an Associate Fellow with the opportunity to perform pro bono work as defined in Rule 756(f) and as required in paragraph 2G of the ISBA Rural Practice Fellowship Program Fellowship and Stipend Agreement.
- The Rural Firm must:
- Have valid malpractice insurance coverage that includes the Fellow and maintain that coverage for the duration of the Rural Practice Fellowship Program;
- For Summer Law Clerks, provide fulltime work for a minimum of 8 weeks;
- For Associate Fellows, provide fulltime work for a minimum of 1 year;
- For Associate Fellows, offer fulltime employment to the Associate Fellow pending bar exam results, if applicable; and
- Provide compensation to the Fellow in addition to the stipend paid to the Fellow through the Rural Practice Fellowship Program.
By applying for this program, a Firm also agrees to the following terms:
- All potential Fellows must apply to the Rural Practice Fellowship Program and must be screened by the Rural Practice Fellowship Program Committee. All potential Fellows must be selected by the Firm applicant from the screened Fellow application pool.
- The firm is not guaranteed the placement of a summer clerk or permanent associate.
- The firm is expected to use good faith efforts to make at least one offer to a summer clerk or permanent associate by the end of October.
- Fellows will not be employees of the ISBA, and I will follow all payroll laws, and other laws, including the minimum wage of Illinois.