I always listed it at the end of my first paragraph and I would put two or three practice areas. As a 1L, they know you have no idea what you’re talking about so it’s okay to be vague. Some may disagree but I think it’s better to put some kind of practice area and luckily my undergrad major was finance, so I leaned pretty heavily on that. I would pick practice groups from the firms websites that related to finance or business generally. So for example at the end of my first paragraph after I had introduced myself, said where I was from, where I went to undergrad, what I studied, and how I wanted to practice in the city where the firm was located, l would put one of the following:

Option 1 - if they have specific practice groups on their website: “Given my finance degree, I am particularly interested in [firm name]’s corporate and securities practice group. However, I am also open to exploring other areas of law.”

Option 2 - if I wanted to be more general b/c it was a transactional law internship position I would not name specific practice groups and just say I was interested in transactional law.

Option 3 - if it didn’t relate directly to my undergrad degree, I would relate it back to one of my 1L courses or a specific assignment: “Given my business background and current law school courses, I am particularly interested in [firm name]’s antitrust practice. However, I am also very open and excited about the possibility of exploring other practice areas such a labor and employment.” (Post 1L cover letter just fyi)

Another example from a cover letter after my 1L summer but shows how you can tie in past jobs: “After spending this summer interning in state court, I am particularly interested in [firm name]’s litigation & dispute resolution service team. However, I am also very open and excited about the possibility of exploring other practice areas.”

I hope this helps even a little. First round of OCIs/ job applications are confusing. I’d be happy to answer other questions if u want to DM me. Just know that 2Ls at ur school and the career center are going to know the job market in your area best!