Internship programs continue successful run in Shoshone County

WALLACE — Four law school students are getting a hands-on look at what daily life is like in a small courthouse.

The students are participating in the county’s internship and clerkship programs under the eyes of Shoshone County Prosecuting Attorney Ben Allen and Magistrate Judge Keisha Oxendine.  

Taylor Cooper, Zachary Stephens, Matthew Suarez and Abygail Berger are at different points in their budding legal careers, but the programs developed in Shoshone County were designed to allow different levels of experience while still giving the students a chance to earn high school or college credit.

The short-term goal of the internship program is two-fold.

“First, invest in our youth by teaching, training and mentoring in a way that supports a positive contribution back to the county, and by the end of the program, interns will hopefully have developed sufficient skills to assist in reducing the workload in the office," Allen said. "If we make the experience positive enough for them, it is our hope they may return in subsequent years to build on the investment we have made and perhaps even return to our community someday to make it their home.”  

Over the years, the caseload in Shoshone County has grown significantly, so bringing in law school students who can help in various capacities has been invaluable to the county.  

“By creating internship opportunities here, we give students experience and skills while making connections to the area, hopefully making them feel at home,” Oxendine said. 

High school-aged interns focus primarily on observation and introductions to paralegal work, while law school students are challenged with more responsibility. First-year law students focus on the research and writing skills necessary to their field, but for second- and third-year law students, they have the opportunity to obtain a limited license to practice under the guidance of a supervising attorney. 

It’s this curriculum that has allowed Cooper and Stephens to have each been assigned a summer caseload for the county. 

Berger, a Wallace High School graduate, is serving in Oxendine’s clerkship program as a second-year law student from the University of Idaho. Each day, she undertakes projects like legal research, document assembly, editing and proofreading opinions, briefings, as well as several other tasks. She is only the second student to pass through the county’s clerkship program.  

“Our community is a place full of career opportunities for individuals in the justice system whether through the courts, prosecution, defense or law enforcement,” Oxendine said.