The Interprofessional Center for Counseling and Legal Services is among the first of its kind in the country through which faculty and students from the disciplines of law, psychology, and social work collaborate to help clients in need.
In the Center, law students frequently work side by side with students from the University of St. Thomas School of Social Work and Graduate School of Psychology. Under the guidance of the Center faculty, law students provide representation and assistance to the underserved populations of the Twin Cities on problems ranging from health care issues to political asylum to issues of social justice.
More information about clinics at the University of St. Thomas that can be found by through the Interprofessional Center for Counseling and Legal Services.
Appellate Clinic
Students will brief and argue an appellate case representing a client pro bono under faculty supervision. The Appellate Clinic is a year-long course for three credits, which will also satisfy the upper level writing requirement. In addition to the representation dimension, there will be a classroom component involving study of written and oral advocacy, appellate courts, appellate jurisdiction, and the rules of appellate procedure. The Appellate Clinic will be offered in those years in which we are able to identify a suitable pro bono case. (3 credits over 2 semesters)
Bankruptcy Litigation Clinic
The Bankruptcy Litigation Clinic involves defending a debtor who has been sued for a denial of discharge, or in a case commenced by a creditor to have one or more of the creditor's claims declared non-dischargeable. (3 credits, 2 semesters)
Consumer Bankruptcy Clinic
The Bankruptcy Clinic serves individuals involved in bankruptcy who cannot afford a lawyer. Students learn the practical application of bankruptcy case law. Clients can also receive therapy and case management, to help them deal with emotional, psychological and relational issues connected to bankruptcy. This course will be taught by our adjunct faculty from Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLC. (3 credits, 1 semester)
Community Justice Project
The Community Justice Project focuses on bridge building with community stakeholders and problem solving in distressed communities. The Community Justice Project will take a comprehensive look at improving the lives of the African American community in the Twin Cities. The CJP has engaged in intensive research into practical solutions to longstanding challenges such as racial disparities in the criminal justice system, police brutality, and racial disparities in the educational and juvenile justice systems for at-risk youth. (6 credits, 1 semester)
Elder Law Clinic
The Elder Law Practice Group provides high quality legal services for seniors with problems related to long-term care and financial abuse and exploitation. Collaborative social work services play an essential role in resolving the clients’ legal cases, as well as addressing other major quality-of-life issues. The most typical case this practice group addresses is one where a nursing home resident has been given a notice of involuntary transfer because of a failure to pay what the nursing home claims is owed. (6 credits, 1 semester)
Federal Commutations Clinic
The first of its kind in the country, the Federal Commutations Clinic explores issues of commutation and looks particularly at cases when students may assist individuals seeking a commutation of sentence. Students investigate requests for assistance, analyze the merits of cases, and make recommendations about whether or not to pursue a particular case. Participation in the Federal Commutations clinic is likely to involve travel to federal penitentiaries. (2 credits, 2 semesters)
Immigration Law Clinic
Students in the Immigration Law Practice Group will represent immigrants seeking to improve legal status in the United States. Students in this practice group may represent persons seeking asylum in the United States as a result of persecution or a fear of persecution in their home countries; provide representation for individuals at Detained Master Calendar Hearings, and participate in immigrant related advocacy projects on behalf of community organizations. (6 credits, 1 semester)
Nonprofit Organizations Clinic
Offered for the first time during the 2012-2013 academic year, the nonprofit clinical course focuses on the legal needs of existing or aspiring nonprofits that originate from law students at the law school. This course is designed to help nonprofit organizations get off the ground and sustain themselves as they promote social and economic justice here and abroad. Students who take this class are likely to volunteer for nonprofit organizations and serve on their boards, promoting servant leadership and social justice. (3 credits, 2 semesters)
Misdemeanor Clinic
Offered for the first time during the spring 2013 semester, UST Law students will represent criminal misdemeanor defendants in a Twin Cities metropolitan county under the supervision of public defenders and a UST Law professor. (4 credits, one semester)