The Monroe Leigh Fellowship in International Law provides $10,000 to one or more students to pursue a public international law project of their choosing. The fellowship is available to UVA law students only for the summer following their 1L or 2L year, or 3Ls for a postgraduate internship. The fellow normally works with a sponsoring organization.
Amanda Huang ’24 will work at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs Criminal Division and Kristina Lorch ’24 will work at the DOJ’s Office of Foreign Litigation Civil Division, both in Washington, D.C.
Background and Application Procedure
The Monroe Leigh Fellowship in International Law was established by Monroe Leigh's family and friends and the University of Virginia School of Law to honor Monroe's commitment to the development of international law and to encourage students to gain valuable international law experience.
A 1947 graduate of the Law School and editor-in-chief of the Virginia Law Review, Leigh had a legal career that spanned six decades, during which he advised governments and private companies and furthered the development of international legal institutions as a scholar and public servant. As a member of the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson for most of his career, he specialized in international law, public international law, international dispute resolution, and U.S. regulations involving national security and foreign policy. Over the years, he was a leader in shaping the U.S. position on war crimes issues. He was president of the American Society of International Law from 1981-82 and he was a member of various U.S. government advisory groups. From 1975-77, he was the legal adviser to the Department of State. Until 1988, he was an adjunct professor on International Trade Law at the University of Virginia School of Law. In 1996, he was a visiting scholar at Wolfson College of Cambridge University, England.
Compensation
The fellowship will be offered to one or more students in a maximum amount of $10,000.
Qualifications
Fellowships are awarded based on academic performance, experience, commitment to the field of international law and the merits of the project proposal.
Application Deadline
Mar. 25, 2022
Application Procedure
Send electronic and hard copies of the following to: Professor Camilo Sánchez, csanchez@law.virginia.edu
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Resume;
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Copy of law school transcript (can be unofficial – 1Ls may provide a copy of prior academic transcript if necessary);
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2 letters of recommendation from Law School faculty members or attorneys who are familiar with the applicant’s work;
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2 essays (each no longer than one page, single spaced)—one describing the proposed project/ work and the other discussing the applicant’s commitment to international law; and
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Letter from the sponsoring organization indicating their willingness to serve as the host organization should the applicant receive the fellowship
Contact
Professor Camilo Sánchez
csanchez@law.virginia.edu
University of Virginia School of Law
580 Massie Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903
Monroe Leigh Fellows, 2003-Present
Ida Abhari ’22
Center for Justice and Accountability
San Francisco
Elizabeth Simper ’23
U.S. Department of Defense Office of the Chief Prosecutor in the Office of Military Commissions
Alexandria, Virginia
Matthew Cooper ’21
Shurat HaDin
Israel
Grace Hauser ’21
Policy, Planning, and Coordination Unit of the U.N. Department of Safety and Security
New York
Annie Magovern ’21
Judge Gary S. Katzmann of the U.S. Court of International Trade
New York
Rachel Raycraft ’20
Fraud Section at the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice
Washington, D.C.
Manal Cheema ’20
Office of the Secretary of Defense prosecuting war crimes
Alexandria, Virginia
Brooke Swann ’20
South Africa Litigation Centre
Johannesburg
Jessica Joyce ’20
U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York in the Criminal Division
New York
Rachel Gallagher ’19
Human Rights Now
Myanmar
Joshua T. Lefebvre ’19
Office of International Affairs (OIA), Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice
Washington, D.C.
Aviva Schaffer ’18
CAIR (Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights) Coalition
Washington, D.C.
Chelsea L. Scism ’19
Office of the Chief Prosecutor (OCP), Office of Military Commissions, Department of Defense
Washington, D.C.
Stephanie Y. Fung '18
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The Hague, Netherlands
Megan C. Keenan '18
U.S. Department of Justice, Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, Criminal Division
Washington D.C.
Karl Lockhart '18
International Finance Corporation
Johannesburg
Anna M. Searcey '18
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs
Washington D.C.
Reedy Swanson ’16
U.S. Department of Justice, Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, Criminal Division
Washington D.C.
Rachel Kincaid '15
EarthRights International
Washington D.C.
Lide Paterno '15
Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice
Washington D.C.
Ashley Roberts '15
Counterterrorism Section, National Security Division, U.S. Department of Justice
Washington D.C.
Erika Trujillo ’15
U.N. Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate
New York
Melissa Kathleen Reilly-Diakun ’14
Seven Hills Global Outreach
Ghana
Mariah Thompson '14
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Office of the Prosecutor
The Hague, Netherlands
Kendra Wergin '14
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, Office of the Prosecutor
The Hague, Netherlands
Calleigh McRaith '12
International Center for Transitional Justice
Cape Town, South Africa
Ravi Romel Sharma '11
U.S. Senate, and ABA (American Bar Association) Standing Committee on Law and National Security
Washington, D.C.
John Stephens '11
Section 27
Johannesburg
Patricia Cooper '10
Asylum Access
Quito, Ecuador
Bilal Ezzeddine '10
Institute for International Law and Human Rights
Washington D.C.
Nilakshi Parndigamage '10
Cohen, Milstein, Sellers & Toll (unpaid internship)
Washington, D.C.
Kathryn B. Finley '09
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)
Arusha, Tanzania
Katharine Flatley '08
Center for Disease Control’s Global AIDS Program for Central America and Panama and Anacafe
Guatemala
James Ryan Harvey '08
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), Office of the Prosecutor
Arusha, Tanzania
Melany Grout '07
Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights
Washington, D.C.
Heather Axford '07
U.N. World Food Program
Rome
Nina DiSalvo '06
Forum for Studies of the Administration of Justice (FORES)
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Jamie Lisagor '05
EarthRights International
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Sara Shapouri '05
Shahid Beheshti University, UNESCO Chair for Human Rights
Tehran, Iran
Christopher James Dunn '04
Special Court for Sierra Leone, Office of the Prosecutor
Freetown, Sierra Leone