OLSPIF Recipients from Left to Right (Top Row): Alex Fletcher, Andreea Hutuleac, Michael Helock, Rachael Wilson, Hayley Porter  (Second Row ): Michael Kummerman, Cristina Sailler, Katie Pitcher, Blossom Van Kinkle, and R. Davis Hunt (Third Row) Eliyana Tadano, Rachael Cairati, Rowan Bond, Ryan Costello, and Sarah Osborn (Bottom Row): Molly O'Brien, Sean Foster, Tyler Hansen, Margaret McAdams, Kimbirlee Miller

In a record-breaking fundraising year, the Oregon Law Students Public Interest Fund (OLSPIF) has named 20 students as 2020 OSLPIF recipients.

OLSPIF is a nonprofit student group that raises money through an annual auction to support law students working over the summer in unpaid public interest positions. This year, the student organization received numerous gifts from faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the law school. At a time when fewer paid summer legal jobs are available to students, OLSPIF-funded work has become an important option for students.

This marks the first year that OLSPIF has been able to offer 20 stipends to students who are passionately engaged in public interest legal work.In addition to regular auction donations, OLSPIF received a $24,300 grant from the Carol and Velma Saling Foundation. The grant funds five student stipends in addition to a student employee and auction services to assist with continued innovations in fundraising for student stipends. 

OLSPIF also received two full-stipend gifts in the memory of the late Emilio Bandiero. Bandiero graduated in 1990 and was Student Bar Association president when the OLSPIF was created.  These stipends were given by Don Corson and Lara Johnson and Professors Caroline Forell and Richard Hildreth. 

Meet the 2020 OSLPIF cohort

Rowan Bond, JD ’22; Kimbirlee Miller, JD ’22; Molly O’Brien ‘22
Access the Law (Eugene, Oregon): This nonprofit assists and represents community members of modest means. Bond, Miller, and O’Brien will assist attorneys with research for cases involving family law, landlord-tenant, debtor-creditor, criminal law, and civil rights issues. As clerks, they will also assist with the Veterans Free Legal Clinic.

Rachael Cairati, JD ‘21
Oregon Law Center - OLC (Portland, Oregon): OLC provides support to low-income Oregonians with a wide range of legal issues including housing, domestic violence, employment, and administrative law. Cairati’s work will focus on family law, domestic violence, and health care. She will conduct legal research, draft legal documents, and appear in court. 

Ryan Costello, JD ‘22
Federal Public Defender – FPD (Eugene, Oregon): The FPD represents indigent people charged with federal crimes and people in the state system on their federal habeas corpus cases.  As a law clerk, Costello will assist by researching legal issues and drafting trial memoranda, motions to suppress, jury instructions, and appellate briefs. 

Alex Fletcher, JD ‘22
Clackamas Indigent Defense Corporation - CIDC (Oregon City, Oregon): CIDC is the primary provider of public defense services for the Clackamas County Circuit Court. As a clerk, Fletcher will provide legal research and writing support for several attorneys within the consortium. He will also work directly with an attorney on several cases from intake to resolution.

Sean Foster, JD ’21; Margaret McAdams, JD ’21; and Rachael Wilson, JD ‘22
Metropolitan Public Defenders – MDP (Portland, Oregon): MPD is the largest non-profit indigent defense provider in Oregon. Foster will handle a caseload of misdemeanor cases from start to finish. McAdams will work in the Juvenile Division and have a caseload of about five cases. Wilson’s work will primarily be conducting legal research and writing memos to assist attorneys.

Tyler Hansen, JD ‘21
Youth Rights Justice – YRJ (Portland, Oregon): YRJ is a juvenile law firm that serves as a dependency and delinquency public defender. Hansen will interview juveniles held in detention facilities. She will also work on a project with a supervising attorney to enact policy change in Oregon regarding fees in juvenile delinquency cases.

Michael Helock, JD '22
Legal Aid Services of Oregon – LASO (Roseburg, Oregon): LASO provides civil legal services to low-income individuals. The organization also works to protect workers' rights, help obtain and maintain habitable housing, preserve the safety of survivors, and protect marginalized communities from discrimination. Helock will work on research and writing projects, eviction expungements, and COVID-19 related matters.

R. Davis Hunt, JD ’21
Oregon Law Center – OLC/Lane County Legal Aid (Eugene, Oregon): OLC provides free legal services in civil matters for low-income individuals who reside in or have legal matters in Lane County. Hunt will assist with research projects in the areas that the OLC office covers and provide assistance with litigation preparation. 

Andreea Hutuleac, JD ‘22
The Commons Law Center (Portland, Oregon): The Commons Law Center seeks to revolutionize access to basic legal services for underserved people. As a law clerk, Hutuleac will be draft legal documents, conduct legal research, and attend consultations, client meetings, and hearings. Hutuleac will also screen potential clients for services and make appropriate referrals to legal resources.

Michael Kummerman, JD ‘22
Legal Aid Services of Oregon – LASO (Albany, Oregon): LASO provides civil legal services to low-income individuals. Kummerman’s work will focus on housing, administrative law, family law, and immigration. He will do legal research, interview clients in English and Spanish, and draft legal documents, among other tasks. 

Katie Pitcher, JD ‘21
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of the General Counsel – NOAA (Washington, D.C.): NOAA projects provide the public accurate information about the changing environment. Pitcher will work in NOAA’s Oceans and Coasts section where she will focus on legal research and writing assignments and assist with administrative appeal matters. 

Hayley Porter, JD ‘21
The Commons Law Center (Portland, Oregon): This Center provides family law, estate planning, probate, and small business law services. Part of Porter’s duties will be to conduct client intakes and screenings. Additionally, she will do legal research and draft legal documents, as well as create community engagement content to ensure that Commons' legal services are useful, relevant, and accessible to underserved and marginalized populations.

Christina Sailler, JD ‘22
Northwest Workers Justice Project – NWJP (Portland, Oregon): NWJP supports the efforts of low-wage, immigrant and contingent workers to protect their workplace dignity and to improve wages and working conditions. Sailler will interview clients, research claims, review payroll records, prepare pleadings, write briefs, prepare and respond to discovery, and help attorneys prepare for hearings and trials.

Eliyana Tadano, JD ‘22
Public Defender Services of Lane County – PDSLC (Eugene, Oregon): The PDSLC provides legal representation to clients appointed by the Lane County Circuit Court. As a law clerk, Tadano will focus on legal research and writing projects, such as creating motions and memos. Tadano will also have the opportunity to witness client interviews, court proceedings, and trials. 

Blossom Van Kinkle, JD ‘22
Willamette Riverkeeper (Portland and Eugene, Oregon): This non-profit organization works to protect and restore the Willamette River’s natural ecosystem and facilitate public access to the river. Van Kinkle will conduct legal research, create legal memoranda and letters, and support state and federal court filings.

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