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Directory

Georgia State University College of Law

Georgia State University
College of Law
P.O. Box 4037
Atlanta, GA 30302
law.gsu.edu

Law School Pro Bono Programs

Contact Information

Darcy Meals
Assistant Director, Center for Access to Justice
[email protected]
404-413-9253



Category Type

Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Program Characterized by a Referral System with a Coordinator Program



Description of Programs

The Center for Access to Justice’s Student Pro Bono Program connects students with legal volunteer opportunities to address unmet legal needs of people of limited means and to enhance the capacity of law and legal institutions to do justice, under the supervision of practicing attorneys in the nonprofit, public, and private sectors.



Location of Programs

Center for Access to Justice



Staffing/Management/Oversight

The Pro Bono Program is housed within the Center for Access to Justice and managed by a student board with oversight from the Center’s Assistant Director.



Funding

Law school/Center for Access to Justice’s operating budget.



Student Run Pro Bono Groups/Specialized Law Education Projects



Faculty and Administrative Pro Bono



Awards/Recognition

Students who complete at least 50 hours of pro bono or public service work are eligible to receive recognition upon graduation. Students graduate with “distinction” for 50-99 hours; with “high distinction” for 100-149 hours; and with “highest distinction” for 150 or more hours of pro bono and public service work.



Community Service



Law School Public Interest Programs

Contact Information

Darcy Meals
Assistant Director, Center for Access to Justice
[email protected]
404-413-9253



Certificate/Curriculum Programs

The Center for Access to Justice’s Public Interest Law and Policy Certificate Program provides students with the training and legal knowledge necessary to serve traditionally underrepresented individuals, communities and interests and to facilitate the development of problem-solving skills relevant to working with and on behalf of public interest issues and underserved populations.

The program is designed to allow students to focus on a particular substantive area specific to their interests and career goals or to explore more broadly the kinds of issues that might arise in doing public interest or pro bono work. Students pursuing the certificate must satisfy the general J.D. requirements and satisfy the curricular elements detailed in the Certificate Information Packet

http://law.gsu.edu/center-access-justice/public-interest-law-policy-certificate/



Public Interest Centers

Center for Access to Justice : https://law.gsu.edu/faculty-centers/center-for-access-to-justice/

Center for Law, Health & Society: https://law.gsu.edu/faculty-centers/center-for-law-health-society/

Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth https://law.gsu.edu/faculty-centers/center-for-the-comparative-study-of-metropolitan-growth/



Public Interest Clinics

Our three in-house clinics, HeLP Legal Services Clinic, Investor Advocacy Clinic, Philip C. Cook Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, operate as a law firm in the Center for Clinical Education, where they serve clients who cannot afford legal help. Clinic students develop their legal skills by directly representing clients. These real lawyering experiences provide rich opportunities for students to learn about the lawyer’s role and ethical engagement.

HeLP Legal Services Clinic

Students develop professional skills in a variety of civil subject matter areas by representing low-income children receiving health care services at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta facilities.

Philip C. Cook Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic

The tax clinic promotes professional skills and training as students represent low-income people during the post-audit stage of their Internal Revenue Service disputes.

Off-Site Clinics

Students take clinical courses and perform legal work off-site in the areas of criminal law and mediation under the supervision of adjunct faculty.

Capital Defender Clinic

Capital Defender Clinic students help the capital defender attorneys effectively represent individuals facing the death penalty, and build factual and legal narratives that will lead to the reversal of death sentences on appeal.

Landlord-Tenant Mediation Clinic

Landlord-Tenant Mediation Clinic students receive training and certification as registered neutrals. They mediate landlord/tenant disputes and other disputes, including cases handled in the State and Magistrate courts; particularly small claim civil issues such as disputes between neighbors, consumers and businesses and creditors and debtors.
v Olmstead Disability Rights Clinic

Taught in partnership with the Atlanta Legal Aid Society’s Disability Integration Project, the clinic focuses on advocacy arising out of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Olmstead decision.

http://law.gsu.edu/clinics/



Externships/Internships

Students in our Externship Program experience tremendous learning opportunities outside the classroom. Externships provide students with practical skills and substantive training while they earn course credit.

Through externships, students gain great insight into the operation of the legal system and develop a heightened sense of professional responsibility. Students are paired with site-supervising attorneys who work one-on-one with students as they develop their legal skills. Students also work throughout the semester with a faculty supervisor who helps guide their learning experience.

Students work in a wide range of Atlanta-area legal placements, government agencies, nonprofit organizations and judge’s offices. Part-time and full-time students are eligible for externships. Placements are offered each semester.

http://law.gsu.edu/experiential-learning/externships/



Classes with a Public Service Component



Public Interest Journals



PI Career Support Center

Center for Professional Development and Career Strategies

https://law.gsu.edu/student-experience/career-development/



Loan Repayment Assistance Programs (LRAP)



Post-Graduate Fellowships/Awards

Law School Funded:



Graduate Student Funded:



Other Funding Sources:



Term Time Fellowships/Scholarships

Law School Funded:



Graduate Student Funded



Other Funding Sources:



Summer Fellowships

Law School Funded:



Graduate Student Funded:



Other Funding Sources:

Public Interest Law Association

Federal Defender Fellowship, administered through Center for Access to Justice



Extracurricular and Co-Curricular Programs



Student Public Interest Groups

2/16/2021