Curriculum Guide · Courses

Professors Kristin Henning and Wallace Mlyniec

J.D. Clinic 532 | 14 credit hours (year long)

The Juvenile Justice Clinic provides students with an opportunity for intensive study of the juvenile delinquency and criminal justice systems and an actual litigation experience before the District of Columbia Superior Court, Family Division. Students in the Clinic provide legal representation to children accused of committing criminal or delinquent acts.

Students in this clinic develop litigation skills such as case planning, interviewing and negotiation techniques, legal research and writing, and other traditional in-court trial advocacy skills. Students are expected to take primary responsibility for their cases while being supervised by experienced litigators. Case loads are flexible and individual attention is given to each student. Although the primary focus is on delinquency cases, the litigation skills developed in the Clinic are transferable to all areas of practice.

Students are also expected to participate in a two-hour seminar twice weekly which explores the substantive and procedural problems encountered in litigation. The seminar examines in depth the legal rights of juveniles in a variety of court experiences. Materials are drawn from the behavioral sciences as well as from traditional legal sources. Students perform simulated exercises using videotape to ensure that in-court performances are successful.

4-6 students will be selected for the Clinic's fall-only program, while 8-10 students will be selected for the full year. The prerequisites for this clinic are those required by the D.C. student practice rule (the completion of 41 credits, including Criminal Justice, Civil Procedure, and Evidence, by the time clinic classes begin).

See clinic course description in the Online Curriculum Guide or the "Clinic Enrollment Policies" in the Bulletin.

A student may only en¬roll in Advanced Evidence: Trial Skills; Civil Litigation Practice; Patent Trial Practice; Trial Practice and Applied Evidence; Trial Practice: Working with Expert Witnesses; or any section of Trial Practice during a semester prior to enrolling for credit in the Center for Applied Legal Studies, Community Justice Project, Criminal Defense and Prisoner Advocacy, Criminal Justice, Domestic Violence, Juvenile Justice, or Law Stu¬dents in Court Clinics. Students may not take Advanced Evidence: Trial Skills; Civil Litigation Practice; Patent Trial Practice; Trial Practice and Applied Evidence; Trial Practice: Working with Expert Witnesses; or any section of Trial Practice during the same semester or a subsequent semester in which they enroll in the Center for Applied Legal Studies, Community Justice Project, Criminal Defense and Prisoner Advocacy, Criminal Justice, Domestic Violence, Juvenile Justice, or Law Stu¬dents in Court Clinics. Students may not concurrently enroll in this clinic and an externship or a practicum course.

Students taking this course must undergo a criminal background check.