Summer Associates

Community association law is one of the most in-demand practice areas in the real world, yet it is seldom covered in law school. Here are a few reasons this practice area offers an excellent career path for law students:

• High Demand. The Foundation for Community Association Research estimates that there are 369,000 community associations nationwide serving 77.1 million residents, including more than 25,000 condominium and homeowners associations in Michigan and Illinois. The number of community associations continues to grow each year, as the majority of new communities are condominium or homeowners associations that will encounter a wide variety of legal issues.
• Niche Practice. While there are approximately 1.37 million attorneys in the United States, CAI estimates that there are only about 4,000 community association attorneys, with fewer than 200 admitted to the College of Community Association Lawyers.  Given that community association law is not frequently taught in law school, you have a real opportunity to carve out a niche that will provide opportunities for career growth.
• Rewarding Work. Associate attorneys are given their own caseload. While you will work under the supervision of a Senior Attorney or Member, you will have direct client contact and attend court, instead of doing grunt work, so you will see the direct impact of your work in bringing peace of mind to the community associations we serve.
• Competitive Compensation at a Sustainable Pace. At Hirzel Law, you can build a high-earning legal career with a more balanced model than traditional BigLaw, as our niche practice allows us to offer competitive compensation packages. Our billable expectations are typically 1,400–1,600 hours for first-year associates, rather than the 2,000+ hour grind that can quickly lead to burnout.

Condominium & HOA Program at a Glance

Hirzel Law, PLC is a nationally recognized community association law firm serving condominium and homeowners associations throughout Michigan and Illinois. Our attorneys represent community associations in collections, litigation, and transactions.

Each summer, we hire 1 to 2 Summer Associates who are rising 2Ls for a 10-week program with the intent of extending full-time offers after graduation. The summer associate program is a key part of Hirzel Law’s long-term growth plan, as we are a niche practice that is not frequently covered in depth in law school. We invest in future attorneys who want meaningful responsibility, real mentorship, and a clear path to build a career in community association law.  A summer associate will rotate between the collections, litigation, and transactions practice areas to determine their best future fit.

What You Will Work On

You will not spend your summer observing from the sidelines. You will do real work that helps real condominium and homeowners associations, guided by community association attorneys who take mentorship seriously.

Typical projects include:

• Legal research on issues in Condominium and HOA law
• Drafting opinion letters and document amendments
• Drafting pleadings, discovery, and motions
• Learning the collections process from the demand stage to eviction or foreclosure
• Observing Court hearings, depositions, mediations, and key client meetings

Training, Feedback, and Mentorship

We believe summer associates succeed when expectations are clear, and feedback is real. You can expect:

• A structured onboarding process with an entire plan for the summer
• Regular check-ins and coaching from attorneys
• Meaningful responsibility with review and guidance
• Exposure to the business of law, such as client service, processes, and functioning within a team

Our Core Values

We’re looking for law students who align with our core values and will grow into attorneys that our clients can trust. You should strongly identify with these traits, as all employees that we hire, from the receptionist to the Managing Member, must share these qualities:

How to Apply

Hirzel Law participates in the on-campus interview process with Chicago-Kent College of Law, DePaul University College of Law, Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Michigan State University College of Law, University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, University of Illinois Chicago School of Law, or Wayne State University Law School.  If you want to stand out in the OCI process, we recommend including a cover letter that explains why you want to work at Hirzel Law.  If you do not want to wait to participate in the OCI, you may apply directly to Hirzel Law as indicated below, but please do not submit multiple applications.

We also hire law students from other law schools in Michigan, Illinois, or other states who ultimately want to start their careers in Michigan or Illinois. Interested candidates should submit the following information between January 1^st and March 15^th each year.

• Cover Letter
• Resume
• Writing sample
• Transcript

Please submit all inquiries to careers@hirzellaw.com.  While we occasionally hire law students to work during the year based on our needs, we primarily use the summer associate program to determine whether a law student will be a good long-term fit at Hirzel Law, PLC.