Requirements for Eligibility
To be eligible to receive an ABA Antitrust Law Section Diversity Stipend, an applicant must meet all of the following requirements:
- The applicant must be enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis at an ABA-accredited law school and must have completed the first year of law school.
- The applicant must be considered a diverse law student (i.e., a student who is a member of a racial or ethnic group that is traditionally underrepresented in the profession and/or a student with disabilities and/or a student who identifies as LGBTQ+).
- The applicant must have accepted a Summer 2025 internship with a Washington, D.C.-based federal government agency or non-profit organization (“Host Organization”) focusing on antitrust, consumer protection, or privacy law. Students who do not report to their Host Organization or who do not complete their internship will be required to return all or a proportional amount of the Stipend Program funds.
- Stipend Program recipients will need to join the ABA Antitrust Law Section as a member, which is free for law students.
- Stipend Program recipients will be required to attend a Summer curriculum course and participate in the Section’s mentoring program.
Resources and Services Provided to the Fellows
The ABA Antitrust Law Section will host a Summer curriculum program providing students with an introduction to antitrust, consumer protection, and privacy law and policy, and access to mentors from its membership.
Application Requirements
Applications and all accompanying material MUST be received by Friday, April 4, 2025. Applications should be transmitted via email in a single PDF to Becky Lehner at [email protected]. Applications that are incomplete or received after April 4, 2025, will not be considered. There is no application fee. The following documents are required to be submitted:
- (1) Completed 2025 Diversity Stipend Program Law Student Application Form
- (2) Offer Letter from the Host Organization
- Including the dates and location of the internship on official letterhead.
- (3) Resumé (no more than 2 pages)
- Including educational background, employment history, and community service activities.
- (4) Law School Transcript (official or unofficial)
- (5) Personal Statement
- Please limit your personal statement to 500 words. Your personal statement is your opportunity to express your interest in antitrust, consumer protection and/or data privacy, and include information that the application form does not convey and that you feel will assist us in reaching a thoughtful decision on your application. Examples of such information include a description of your personal strengths, your contributions through community service, a description of any special or unusual circumstances that may have affected your academic performance, or your personal and family history of educational or socio-economic disadvantage. While this list is not all-inclusive, we offer it for you to consider the types of information that may be useful in evaluating your application.
- The ABA prohibits the use of all generative artificial intelligence, including large language models, to create any portion of a contestant’s written submission for this competition whether in the research, writing, or editing phase. Generative AI in this context includes, but is not limited to, OpenAI’s “GPT” series, BLOOM, Jasper, BERT, Galactica, and Lex. Note that for these purposes, AI does not include basic tools for checking grammar, spelling, references, etc. By submitting the personal statement, contestants are affirming that they did not utilize AI in the preparation of their written work product. The ABA reserves the right to screen submissions for use of AI through an AI detector.
- (6) Release Form
- Please do not send any collateral materials, such as articles, etc., outside of those required above.
- One (1) Letter of Recommendation is optional
- The letter may come from a former employer, supervisor of significant public service work, a professor, or mentor.
SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION OF WINNERS: Entries will be judged based on the following criteria: (1) a secured internship with a qualified employer (see website); (2) personal statement; (3) extracurriculars; and (4) compliance with these Rules. The entries will be judged anonymously by a committee comprised of members of the Section’s substantive committee that sponsored the competition theme. Winning selections will be made by the committee. The Section Director will notify the winners by email of their selection no later than May 12, 2025. The Section reserves the right not to award any prizes if it is determined that no entries are of sufficient quality to merit selection that year. If a potential winner does not respond within ten (10) business days after ABA’s first attempt to contact him or her, or if the contact is returned as non-deliverable, the potential winner forfeits all rights to be named as winner or receive a prize, and an alternate winner may be chosen.
PRIZES: The recipients will receive a $5,000 cash stipend. The winners will be announced on the Section’s website. Recipients must submit a completed W-9 to receive their cash prize. The full fair market value of the prize will be reported on a 1099 form. Winners are responsible for all taxes in connection with receiving a prize.
LAWS AND REGULATIONS: This program is governed by U.S. law and all relevant federal, state, and local laws and regulations apply. By entering, all participants agree that the program shall be governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, that the courts of Illinois shall have exclusive jurisdiction, and that Cook County, Illinois shall be the venue for any dispute or litigation relating to or arising from the competition. Void where prohibited by law.
CONDITIONS OF PARTICIPATION: By participating, each entrant agrees to these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor, and releases and discharges the ABA, subsidiary and affiliated entities, and each of their respective officers, directors, members, employees, independent contractors, agents, representatives, successors and assigns (collectively “Sponsor”) from any and all liability whatsoever in connection with this program, including without limitation legal claims, costs, injuries, losses or damages, demands or actions of any kind (including without limitation personal injuries, death, damage to, loss or destruction of property, rights of publicity or privacy, defamation, or portrayal in a false light) (collectively “Claims”). Except where prohibited, acceptance of a prize constitutes a release by any winner of the Sponsor of any and all Claims in connection with the administration of this program and the use, misuse or possession of any prize. All entries become the property of Sponsor and will not be acknowledged or returned. Sponsor is not responsible for errors or for lost, late, or misdirected mail or email, or telecommunication or hardware or software failures, including by reason of any bug or computer virus or other failure. Sponsor may cancel, modify or terminate the program if it is not capable of completion as planned, including by reason of infection by computer virus, tampering, unauthorized intervention, force majeure or technical difficulties of any kind.
PRIVACY POLICY/DATA COLLECTION: Information provided by entrants in connection with this program is subject to Sponsor’s privacy policy, available at http://www.americanbar.org/utility/privacy.html
SPONSOR: American Bar Association, Section of Antitrust Law, 321 North Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois 60654.
Questions about the Program can be directed to Becky Lehner at [email protected].