Client Advocate

Make a meaningful impact as a PFJ Client Advocate

Become a Client Advocate and work directly with clients in the criminal legal system. Apply today or register for office hours to learn more.

Advocates work directly to help clients avoid the devastating impacts of arrest and support clients to move forward from the criminal legal system with their future opportunities intact. Meanwhile, Advocates also receive first hand exposure to the criminal legal system and a life-changing public service experience.

Every day is different as an Advocate, whether you're working directly with a client, building awareness of your services in the community, or collaborating with a community partner.

• Substantial impact in communities
• Increased confidence in your ability to face new challenges

As a Partners for Justice Client Advocate, you’ll engage in a meaningful fellowship experience designed to make a concrete difference in clients’ lives. With training, mentorship, and ongoing support, Advocates are integrated as full‑time employees within public defender offices across the country, offering real life exposure to the criminal legal system.

• Connect with clients to learn more about the problems they are facing and their goals
• Depending on your clients’ needs, creatively assist with issues like clearing past criminal convictions, preparing for child services interventions, accessing public benefits, maintaining work licenses, finding and maintaining housing, and obtaining mental health counseling or substance use treatment
• Partner closely with attorneys to provide relevant information and documents for clients’ criminal case and other legal issues
• Build a network of local services, community organizations, and civil attorneys so that you can appropriately refer and advocate for clients
• Use your detailed knowledge of court processes and requirements to help your clients navigate these institutions
• Advocate for clients with service providers, attorneys, judges, landlords, employers, and others, telling your clients’ stories in a compelling way that gets results
• Collaborate with your teammates at your host office and nationwide to share knowledge, brainstorm solutions, and build a community

To help applicants learn more about the PFJ program and prepare for our Advocate selection process, we offer office hours with our national team, along with resume and interview workshops.

Please complete the application to apply for the Partners for Justice Professional Fellowship Program.

For those interested in becoming an Advocate, office hours are a great chance to learn more about the role and the PFJ program. This event is hosted by a PFJ national team member and is held on a drop‑in basis in hour and a half blocks, depending on attendance this event may be one‑on‑one or in a group. Office hours are not part of our interview process and they are not evaluative, so we invite everyone to bring questions.

This workshop helps attendees put their best foot forward when applying to be a PFJ Advocate or in any job they choose.

Candidates who receive an interview will be invited to attend the Advocate Panel. This virtual panel provides candidates an opportunity to hear from current Client Advocates about their day‑to‑day experiences and ask any questions about the Advocate role or PFJ Program. More information will be provided to candidates with their interview invitation.

This panel is made available to candidates invited for a final interview. PFJ organizes panel discussions with the public defender supervisors from each office where we are currently placing Client Advocates. Candidates will have the opportunity to meet potential supervisors, learn more about the placement offices, and ask any questions. More information will be provided to candidates with their final interview invitation.

The timelines below are for PFJ's standard Spring and Fall recruiting cycles for the Client Advocate Professional Fellowship. We are currently also recruiting for special placements in Siskiyou County and San Bernardino County, CA which will start on March 5, 2026.…