Eligibility

To be eligible for consideration for the program, an applicant must meet the following requirements:

• Have graduated between December 2006 and May 2011 from UNC School of Law OR graduated May 2006 and worked in a judicial clerkship.
• Work a minimum of 20 hours per week in a law-related job in public service that makes substantial use of legal skills by requiring passage of the bar or otherwise drawing heavily on law school training.

The following is a list of qualifying employment for the program:

Tier I

Eligible applicants employed in the following areas of public service work will be considered for the program first (in no order of priority):

• A law-related job at an organization that is described in section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the Code.
• A law-related job at a non-governmental organization that is located outside of the United States.
• A law-related job at a federal or state prosecutor's office.
• A law-related job at a federal or state public defender's office.
• A law-related job at a federal, state or local government agency excluding judicial clerkships.
• A public service law-related fellowship.

Tier II

Eligible applicants employed in the following areas of public service work will be considered for the program after eligible applicants from Tier I (in no order of priority):

• A judicial clerkship.
• A public service law-related job at a private law firm or as a solo practitioner.

Other Eligibility Requirements

• Applicants must have an annual salary of no more than $68,888, or the GS-11 step 7 equivalent (refer to the 2011 federal salary table) for their locale.
• Must not be in default, and must be current on any eligible educational loans, including all need-based federal, institutional and private loans for law school education (excludes bar loans).
• Must be in active repayment status, on at least one eligible loan, as of the application date. Those in deferment or forbearance status, or not required to make any payments through the Income Based Repayment (IBR) plan, will not be considered for an LRAP award.

Determination of Assistance

In selecting participants, the committee and the dean may consider, but are not limited to, the following factors: salary, debt level, net worth, type of employment, length of employment, location of employment and any special financial circumstances. The committee will also consider other financial information provided on the submitted application.

Consideration by the committee does not guarantee that any benefits will be received.