Cecilia Atkins, a rising 3L student at Michigan Law, chose to spend her summer internship at the King County Department of Public Defense (DPD) largely because of Washington’s unique Rule 9 licensure that allows supervised students to speak on the record. At the start of the 10-week program, she took over a handful of cases from a public defender who rotated into felonies from practicing in Seattle Municipal Court.

Although Cecilia had heard from classmates at Michigan who had interned at DPD that she’d have the support from supervisors and non-attorney staff to provide the high-quality representation her clients deserved, taking on more clients than she’d ever represented in a clinic seemed daunting at first. Then, she started meeting the people whose interests she spent the summer working to serve.

“I had so many concerns about telling [my clients] that I’m an intern, but they have been incredibly trusting. I’ve been lucky to work with so many clients who are incredibly kind people.” Read more.

Pictured: DPD’s Rule 9 interns gather outside the Dexter Horton Building in downtown Seattle.