LEGAL INTERN PROGRAM SALARIES AND BENEFITS
(For Compensated Legal Internships)
Salaries
Benefits and Services
— Federal Benefits
• Annual Leave
• Sick Leave
• Holidays
— Department Benefits and Services
• Fitness Center
• Justice Federal Credit Union
SALARIES
Law Interns are compensated under the General Schedule (GS) for federal employees authorized by Title 5, U.S. Code. Federal salaries vary by geographic location. Employees assigned to high cost-of-living areas receive a percentage of their base pay as "locality pay." The Office of Personnel Management publishes GS salary tables that list base pay and, for geographic areas with locality pay, the specific amounts. For both the current GS base salary and exact GS salaries by location, visit www.opm.gov/oca/08tables/indexGS.asp. Volunteer internships are not compensated.
The chart below lists the 2008 GS pay scale, current base salary (annual and hourly) and current salary for the Washington, D.C. area (annual and hourly) for Summer Law Interns.
| Qualifications |
General Scale (GS) Pay Grade and Base Salary (Not Including Locality Pay) |
General Scale (GS) Salary for Washington, D.C. Area(Including Locality Pay) |
| Candidates with a law degree (J.D. or equivalent) at time of employment |
GS-11, step 1
Annual: $48,148
Hourly: $23.07 |
Annual: $58,206
Hourly: $26.69 |
| Candidates who have completed two years of law school (equivalent to full-time study) at the time of employment |
GS-7, step 1
Annual: $32,534
Hourly: $15.59 |
Annual: $39,330
Hourly: 18.85 |
| Candidates who have completed less than two years of law school (equivalent to full-time study) at the time of employment |
GS-5, step 1
Annual: $26,264
Hourly: $12.58 |
Annual: $31,751
Hourly: $15.21 |
BENEFITS AND SERVICES
Even compensated law interns do not generally receive employment benefits; however, if an intern works for 90 days, he or she does earn annual and sick leave. Summer law interns in Washington, D.C. may also join the Department's fitness center and the Justice Federal Credit Union.
Annual leave: 4 hours per pay period
Sick leave: 4 hours per pay period
Holidays: Federal employees receive 10 paid holidays each year, including New Year's Day, Martin Luther King's Birthday, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans' Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.
Justice Occupational Health Organization (state-of-the-art fitness center): Small monthly fee
Justice Federal Credit Union(full-service financial institution)
The Department of Justice offers an array of benefits and opportunities to its employees. It recognizes the need to support employees both at work and in their lives outside the workplace by providing both standard Federal benefits and tailored Department benefits. |
