World-class Training for Tomorrow's Leaders

The Blackstone Legal Fellowship is a nine-week summer leadership development program that trains Christian law students in constitutional law – and is unlike any legal internship program offered in America. Over the last 10 years, ADF has trained more than 1,000 of the best and brightest law students representing 144 of the top law schools across America.

“I will look back on my legal journey and pinpoint Blackstone as a turning point.”
2009 Blackstone Legal Fellowship Intern

The goal of the Blackstone Legal Fellowship is to develop a new generation of lawyers who will rise to positions of influence and leadership as legal scholars, litigators, policy makers, and judges. These men and women of Christian conviction, who will work to ensure that justice is carried out in America's courtrooms, are being trained to restore freedom and will shape what tomorrow will look like in America. 

This rigorous training program addresses many of the challenging cultural and legal issues facing Christian lawyers in the new millennium. Students receive highly specialized, in-depth training and hands-on work experience in:

• Natural law principles: the foundation of law on which our country was established
• Practical, real-world experience in bringing crucial change to the current legal system
• Sound, reasoned defense of religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family

The Program

Phase I
Interns gather for two weeks of lectures, seminars, and interactive discussions designed to confront conventional wisdom in legal education and present a principled, analytical framework and biblical viewpoint.  In addition, interns engage in formal and informal discussions with faculty and mentors who challenge popular, relativistic thinking and promote robust understanding of universal moral truths.

Phase II
Interns are placed in the field, either nationally or internationally, for six weeks with various allied public interest law firms, attorneys, law professors, and public policy organizations that provide a venue for them to impact the culture right now in the areas of constitutional law, religious freedom, sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.

Phase III
Interns gather once again with Blackstone faculty and mentors for a week of debriefing, further training, and career guidance. Phase III includes presentations designed to provide practical career advice from judicial law clerks, elected officials, academics, congressional staff, and constitutional litigators.  The interns leave not only with increased knowledge and conviction, but also with connections to other interns and faculty who will assist them throughout their education and careers.

A Growing Impact on Religious Freedom

This unique program began in 2000 with 24 of the highest-caliber Christian law students and – thanks to the support of dedicated Christians like you – has since grown to a class of 133 students in 2011. This critical program is bringing up a new generation of men and women of conviction, passion, and intelligence to defend Our First Liberty – religious freedom.

With your support, the Blackstone Legal Fellowship can continue to make a significant difference for religious freedom, help transform the legal system, and shape what tomorrow will look like in America.