Description

The Immigrants' Rights Clinic offers students the opportunity to provide direct representation to indigent immigrants, including immigrant survivors of domestic violence, non-citizens in removal (deportation) proceedings, and asylum seekers. Students enrolled in the clinic participate in all aspects of case development, including interviewing clients and witnesses, investigating facts, writing pleadings, developing case strategy, conducting legal research, and/or arguing cases. Clinic students also work on a variety of multi-disciplinary legal advocacy projects on behalf of immigrants' rights organizations and community groups. Students conduct various forms of advocacy, including impact litigation, media work, public education, lobbying, litigation in international tribunals, and grassroots organizing.

No prior substantive experience or background in immigration or immigrants' rights work is necessary.

Special instructions:

General Structure of Clinical Courses

Beginning with the 2009-2010 academic year, each of the Law School's clinical courses is being offered on a full-time basis for 12 credits. Students enrolled in a clinic are not permitted to enroll in any other classes, seminars, directed research or other credit-yielding activities during the quarter in which they are enrolled in a clinic. This will allow students to obtain an immersive professional experience without the need to balance clinical projects with other classes, exams and papers. (The rules described here do not apply to Advanced Clinics for students who are continuing with a clinic in which they were previously enrolled. For information about Advanced Clinics, please see the course descriptions for those courses.) Students enrolled in a clinic should expect to work at least 40 hours per week and to be available for meetings during normal business hours. Because students have no other courses (and hence no exams or papers), the clinical quarter goes from the first day of classes through the final day of the examination period.

The work during the week is divided into three components. First, the main component is the work on client matters or case work. Students are expected to devote at least 30 hours per week to the various facets of this work (this time includes meetings with instructors to discuss the work). Second, students will spend approximately five-to-seven hours per week preparing for and participating in a weekly seminar or seminars. Third, over the course of the quarter each student will spend a total of 27 hours (plus appropriate preparation time) participating in "clinical modules." These clinic-wide modules are mini-courses designed to enhance the clinical quarter by providing students with opportunities to develop their professional skills, problem solving capacities, understanding of professional ethics, and exposure to professional values. Each module involves 4.5 hours of meeting time and students are required to complete six modules during the course of their clinical quarter. Some modules and some clinic meetings may take place on evenings or weekends.

Students will be awarded three separate grades for their clinical quarter, each reflecting four credits. The three grades are broken into the following categories: clinical practice; clinical methods; and clinical coursework. Grading is pursuant to the H/P system.

• Number of Units: 4
• Course Number: 225

Recently Taught By:

• Jayashri Srikantiah

All Public Interest Law courses:

• Community Law Clinic
• Community Law Clinic: Advanced
• Educational Inequality
• Immigrants' Rights Clinic
• Immigrants' Rights Clinic: Advanced
• Immigration Law
• Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship
• Law, Litigation, and Educational Policy
• Local Government Law
• Regulation of the Political Process
• The Democratization of Credit
• Youth and Education Law Project: Advanced