NCLA Internship Spotlight

Jessica Moeller

2023 Clerk

Law School: University of Chicago Law School

Hometown: Tupelo, MS

What were your duties as an NCLA intern? The majority of my work was legal research to investigate areas of the law related to potential new cases or to support ongoing litigation, as well as helping review and edit documents. I was also able to assist with drafting an amicus brief and a comment about proposed rulemaking.

What did you most enjoy about your internship? I really enjoyed being able to see what public interest litigation looks like on a day-to-day basis. Interacting with the litigators and the rest of the NCLA team helped me understand how public interest non-profits work to support their clients.

What interesting thing(s) did you learn about administrative law? I learned about how the comment process works for proposed rulemaking, and how those rules fit into the larger scheme of laws and regulations that affect Americans and their rights.

How might you use what you’ve learned later in your professional career? The legal research skills I have learned will have applicability to any legal job I might have in the future. By having the opportunity to conduct searches and get more familiar with legal resources, I feel more comfortable in my ability to figure out what the law is and how it applies to specific fact patterns.

Any advice for other students who want to intern at NCLA in the future? I would recommend students pay attention to Bluebooking, as it is vital for finalizing documents for filing. I would also suggest students listen to NCLA’s Administrative Static podcast—it helps you get familiar with the type of work NCLA is involved with, as well as the specific cases they are currently working on, and it allowed me to get up-to-speed on the work much quicker.