Public Interest Practicum

THE GOALS OF PUBLIC INTEREST PRACTICUM INCLUDE:

• To teach students how to learn from experience and how to learn from observation;
• To encourage a particular understanding of lawyers as public servants, including the obligation to engage in public service, of legal practice as a matter of character and ethics, and of legal representation as an act of service on behalf of clients and the greater community;
• To inculcate habits of reflection on fundamental issues of professional and personal identity;
• To instruct students in issues of professional responsibility, especially those issues that commonly arise in public interest and governmental legal work;
• To educate students about public service legal work, and to develop understanding of the impact of the legal system on underrepresented and marginalized persons and communities;
• To provide the opportunity to examine the “real life” impact of legal doctrine and processes in real life and to provide a laboratory in which students and faculty explore particular areas of law;
• To provide valuable assistance to providers of legal services to under-represented persons and communities;
• To critique the capacities and limitations of lawyers and the legal system.

METHODS FOR ACHIEVING THOSE EDUCATIONAL GOALS INCLUDE:

• Field work in public interest and governmental legal offices, in which students assist in legal work of the office under supervision of a lawyer or lawyers in the office. Student performance is subject to careful critical review by the field supervisor.
• Weekly classroom meetings, led by the faculty supervisor, in which the class as a whole discusses issues such as:
  - learning from experience and learning from observation; the importance of reflection and journaling;
  - fundamental lawyering skills; the exercise of professional judgment; particular ethical and professional issues in public interest and governmental practice, such as duties of diligence and competence, conflicts of interest, and confidentiality, and access to justice issues;
  - understanding lawyers as public servants, including the obligation to engage in public service, of legal practice as a matter of character and ethics, and of legal representation as an act of service on behalf of clients and the greater community (including stories of lawyer “heroes”);
  - finding meaning and satisfaction in law practice, including the joy and satisfaction found in serving others, barriers to fulfillment in law practice, work/life balance issues, and self care and dealing with stress; and
  - critiquing and re-imagining prevailing paradigms of the legal system and legal practice.
• Readings selections from books and articles relevant to the issues discussed in the classroom meetings;
• Weekly journaling (reviewed by faculty) to encourage reflection upon the student’s experiences, learning about lawyering and the legal system, and issues of their own professional identity and purpose.
• Regular individual meetings between the students and the faculty supervisor in which discussion is encouraged of issues and concerns arising out of the students’ experiences.

Course Descriptions

Practicum Sites

Applications: Practicum Application | Habeas Project Application (due date Nov 13 5:00 PM)