The Laurel Rubin Farm Worker Justice Project is a farm worker advocacy project that supports and funds law students to work in summer internships with legal services organizations that provide civil legal services to Washington farm workers. It is named after Laurel Rubin, a devoted farm worker advocate who died in the course of her advocacy work. Since 1999, the Project has sponsored 22 summer internships for law students to work alongside experienced attorneys to provide legal services to farm workers in need.

The Laurel Rubin interns work on matters involving worker safety, housing, access to health care, immigration, employment discrimination, unemployment and workers compensation, and consumer rights, wherever the resources are most needed to serve the farm worker community.

We are tremendously grateful to our generous sponsors and contributors, including the Kongsgaard-Goldman Foundation, Safeco Insurance Foundation, Starbucks Coffee Company, and LAW Fund, together with Bergman & Frockt, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates, MacDonald Hoague & Bayless, Phillips Law Group PLLC, Rios Cantor PS, Seattle University School of Law, Sonata Capital Group, Inc., Teutsch Partners, University of Washington School of Law, Vandeberg Johnson & Gandara, and many others.

Farm workers currently live in third world conditions within the boundaries of our own state. Many agricultural workers live in labor camps or overcrowded apartments. Others spend time living in their cars, in tents, or along river banks. Average annual income for Washington is less than $10,000; and just 5 percent of farm workers report being covered by employer provided health insurance. Nationally, the rate of fatal occupational injuries for farm workers is almost ten times the rate for all U.S. industries.

The Laurel Rubin Farm Worker Justice Project assists farm workers in their efforts to enforce their right to fair, dignified, humane and safe working and living conditions. The Laurel Rubin Farm Worker Rights Project seeks to get additional advocates into the community immediately through law student summer internships to help ensure indigent farm workers' access to justice.

The Laurel Rubin Farm Worker Justice Project Law Student Internships

Interns work under the supervision of legal aid services attorneys in several counties throughout the state. Internships are earmarked for current law school students. Information on how to apply can be found at www.columbialegal.org and www.nwjustice.org

In 2007, the Project raised a record $37,000 from individual and organizational donors. The Project will again sponsor five law student interns to do farm worker outreach and advocacy in 2008:

• Angelita Chávez (University of Washington School of Law) will work with Columbia Legal Services in Kennewick, WA;


• Tracy Frazier, (University of Oregon School of Law) will work with Northwest Justice Project in in Yakima, WA;


• Kate Benward (University of Washington School of Law) will work with Northwest Justice Project in Yakima, WA;


• Graciela Navarro (Lewis and Clark School of Law) will work with Columbia Legal Services in Yakima, WA; and


• Maria Mena (Seattle University School of Law) will work with Columbia Legal Services in Wenatchee, WA.

For photos showing 2007 Laurel Rubin interns in action, click here.

For an August 2007 article written by a 2006 Laurel Rubin intern, Michael Khalili, describing his internship with Columbia Legal Services in Yakima, WA, click here.