National Jurist - February 2008 - (Page 18) Unique opportunities to help The growth of legal clinics has brought with it specialized programs that allow students to help save the environment, represent women worldwide, and work with veterans, among many others. ow would you like to work with veterans in need of legal aid, help save endangered prairie dogs or write human rights legislation in Ghana — all as part of your law school curriculum? As both students and employers demand more practical experience, law student clinics are becoming increasingly popular. And schools are responding to pleadings and motions and assist at trial or negotiate settlements. Denver students on several occasions have sued the federal and state governments for failure to protect endangered species. Recently, clinical students challenged the U.S. Department of Fish & Wildlife’s decision not to list the whitehaired prairie dog as an endangered species. Center, students can choose from 19 clinics, among them the International Women’s Human Rights Clinic. It focuses primarily on working with lawyers in other nations to end practices such as gender By Ursula Furi-Perry discrimination, sexual harassment and violence against women. In the fall, students work in teams to institute test-case constitutional lawsuits in other countries, said director Susan Deller Ross. During the spring, they draft proposed legislation to end some form of discrimination against women. In past semesters, students helped overturn a law in Uganda that allowed for discriminatory laws in inheritances, divorces and criminal penalties for adultery. “They become experts in international and comparative law and research methodology,” said Deller Ross. “They get an in-depth appreciation of what international human rights law is and what it can accomplish.” At some law schools, clinics allow students to experience a unique and lesser-known practice area. For example, students at the University of Minnesota Law School in Minneapolis can participate in the school’s Indian Child Welfare Clinic. Valparaiso University School of Law in Indiana offers the Sports Law Clinic, where students focus on alternative dispute resolution in the sports world. “There is a need for protecting athletes’ rights,” said Michael Straubel, clinic director. “We saw that as an opportunity to do something unique.” Students assist with fact gathering, researching case precedents, and drafting briefs. They’ve handled cases ranging from code of conduct violations charges to disputes over who should represent the U.S. in world championships. In one case, students assisted an athlete charged with dop- Georgetown University Law Center student Aparna Polavarupu (left) and a lawyer (right) interview a Tanzanian woman (center) during a 2005 trip to Tanzania with the law school’s International Women’s Human Rights Clinic. student demands for better practical skills by instituting unique legal clinics. One of the top schools for environmental law education, Denver University Storm School of Law, is the home of an Environmental Law Clinic. Students work with small and midsized grass-roots environmental groups, said clinic director Jay Tutchton. They draft demand letters, New England School of Law in Boston also offers an Environmental Advocacy seminar that allows students to assist advocacy groups, performing administrative research, fact-gathering and case preparation. Students have worked on cases involving wind energy, public transportation and related topics. At Georgetown University Law 18 THE NATIONAL JURIST February 2008
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