Sample cover letter

418 North Pleasant Street, #108
Amherst, MA 01002
February 7, 2006

Holmes & Labrador
Attorneys-at-Law
120 Duane Street, Suite 400
New York, NY 10007

Please accept my application for your Trial Assistant opening. Currently, I am a senior at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, with a double major in Legal Studies and History. I will be graduating in May, 2006 with a GPA of 3.3, and I am planning to pursue a career in law.

My experience matches many of your requirements. Many of the duties, such as locating and interviewing witnesses, serving subpoenas, and filing court documents require someone with good interpersonal skills. As a waitress in a very busy seafood restaurant over the past three summers, I learned to deal with a wide variety of people in a respectful, tolerant manner. This training will help me adjust quickly to the pace of your office and will enable me to work with your clients, potential witnesses, court personnel, and government officials. Other duties, such as organizing discovery material and trial evidence, require someone with good organizational and computer skills. I am proficient in all Microsoft applications. Since I have worked part time throughout college to pay for my tuition, I had to be well organized in order to fullfill my obligations to my professors and my employers. My GPA is a testament to my hard work. My course work also prepared me for your job. I learned to use Lexis-Nexis, as well as many internet sites, to conduct research for papers and projects. I have taken courses in Legal Research and Writing, Due Process and the Criminal Trial, and Women and the Law.

I am comfortable around many different types of people and enjoy the variety of experiences New York City has to offer. I am excited about the possibility of beginning my career in a small firm that specializes in criminal defense work. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need any more information. I am available for an interview at any time and can be reached at (413) 545-1000. My email address is student@umass.edu.

Sincerely,

Samantha B. Student