Legal Intern

Position Title: Legal Intern

Department: Legal

Who we are: The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) is one of the Nation’s preeminent Housing Finance Agencies and one of the State’s ten largest financial institutions. Our mission is to finance the creation and preservation of affordable housing across the state. IHDA oversees more than 20 federal and state programs on behalf of the state of Illinois and serves as one of the state’s primary resources for housing policy and program administration. For over 50 years, IHDA has led the state in financing and supporting affordable housing.

At IHDA we strive to create and maintain a work environment that promotes diversity, recognition and inclusion. IHDA is committed to hiring and investing in individuals of diverse talents and backgrounds to ensure a range of perspectives and experiences inform and guide our work of financing affordable housing in the state of Illinois.

Summary: The Legal Intern will provide support to Illinois Housing Development Authority’s in-house legal team and internal clients. The Legal Intern will be responsible for assisting with a variety of tasks in legal areas related to the financing of affordable housing.

Among the benefits of being the Legal Intern at the Authority are:

• The opportunity to understand and appreciate the daily requirements of practicing government, and real estate financing law under the supervision of an attorney.
• Gaining a greater understanding of the internal workings of a governmental authority, and the financing of multifamily, affordable housing projects in Illinois.
• Further refining valuable research and communication skills that can be carried into the future.
  
  
  

Responsibilities:

• Reviewing, organizing and possibly revising the Legal Department’s library of form loan documents, regulatory agreements, certificates, and other records associated with the various funding programs the Authority administers.
• Researching Authority policies and how they may impact different departments and working groups throughout the Authority.
• Researching specific legal issues, mostly in real estate and finance law best practices and reporting those findings.
• Assist the Authority’s attorneys in drafting memorandums, agreements and/or other written documents.
• Working with the Authority’s attorneys and paralegals to assist in pending matters as they arise.
  
  
  

Experience:

• Must be a law student and have completed at least one year of law school by the start of the internship.
• Be able to understand and grasp ideas quickly and follow instructions with initiative and exercise good judgement.
• Be able to pay attention to detail.
• Have the ability to read, interpret and apply technical materials encountered as a result of work assignments.
• Good communication skills, with very strong research and the ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing.
• Basic knowledge of principles, methods, materials, practices, and references utilized in legal research, presentation and drafting legal documents.
• Basic knowledge of the real estate residential, multifamily law and a genuine interest in law is a plus, but this is an administrative position that does not require legal knowledge to get started. Must be motivated to work and learn.
  
  
  

IHDA’s Summer Internship Program Highlights:

• Paid Internship
• Open to college students (must be an actively enrolled undergraduate or graduate student at the time of applying)
• Full-time hybrid internship program that runs from June – August (typically 10 weeks)
• You will receive on-the-job training from industry experts
• Participate in workshops to gain insight on key departments at the Authority
• Participate in IHDA’s Mentorship Program
• Attend outings to connect with fellow interns
  
  
  

EOE