What is the NCPL Fellowship?

The NCPL Fellowship in Nonprofit Law permits one Fellow each year to spend a year in residence at a nonprofit organization. The 2025-2026 Fellow will work closely with senior staff and staff attorneys at Lawyers Alliance for New York (Lawyers Alliance) who have practice specialties that will expose the Fellow to a broad range of disciplines that address the legal needs of nonprofit organizations.

Given the varied nature of the legal work performed by Lawyers Alliance and the diverse group of nonprofit organizations it represents, the NCPL Fellow will experience the widest possible exposure to representing nonprofit organizations on interesting and complex legal projects. These legal challenges will enable the NCPL Fellow to develop relevant skills to the maximum extent.

An article about the NCPL Fellowship in the Autumn 2021 Lawyers Alliance newsletter can be found here.

Who can be an NCPL Fellow?
Each year, one Fellowship is awarded to a U.S. law school graduate.  Fellows are selected for their scholarship, leadership, and commitment to practicing in the field of nonprofit law. Fellows will be selected without regard to the applicant’s race, color, religion, gender, political beliefs, national origin, disability, age, or sexual orientation.

Lawyers Alliance for New York

Lawyers Alliance for New York  is the leading provider of business and transactional legal services for nonprofit organizations that are improving the quality of life in New York City’s low income neighborhoods. It was founded in 1969 by dedicated attorneys who believed that improving the quality of life for all New Yorkers was a personal and professional responsibility. Each fiscal year, Lawyers Alliance represented over 700 nonprofits on more than 1,300 different legal matters and assisted hundreds more through brief consultations and educational programs. The missions of nonprofit organizations that Lawyers Alliance represents each year are as diverse as the nonprofit sector itself. These nonprofits are developing and providing housing, stimulating economic opportunity, improving urban health and education, promoting community arts, and operating and advocating for vital programs that benefit low-income New Yorkers of all ages. Because any nonprofit that is operating programs that have a positive impact on the quality of life in New York City neighborhoods is eligible for its services, its clients include community based local organizations, city-wide nonprofits, state-wide organizations, and national or even international organizations.

Term and Salary

The term of the NCPL Fellowship is one year. The 2025-2026 Fellowship will commence in September 2025 with the term ending in August 2026. Fellows will receive a salary of $70,000 plus benefits.

Additional information and the application form can be found at this link.