Because clinics operate differently than teaching, writing, and other simulation courses, students should consider the following before enrolling: The clinic generally defines limited financial resources as gross annual income from all sources less than 300% of the federal poverty line for individuals and organizational budgets of $100,000 or less. Although our legal services are provided free of charge, clients are responsible for certain fees and other costs charged by third parties for their transactions. For example, clients are responsible for paying the fees associated with filing a tax exemption claim. All these fees are paid directly to the third party. Once admitted to a clinic, you must commit to attending a mandatory clinical orientation session on the first Friday of the semester from 12:00 to 15:30. Please make arrangements to participate in the training. Texas A&M Law is one of the few ABA-accredited law schools that requires all students to provide 30 hours of pro bono legal assistance. This provides our students with hands-on legal experience and provides legal assistance to members of our disadvantaged community. To apply, please complete a legal services form and submit it online. You can also call 817-212-4123. The clinic meets with interested parties by appointment only. Our regular business hours are Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm, but we may be able to schedule appointments outside of this time. Please note that we do not accept walk-in candidates.
If you have a legal problem listed below, you can avail free help from lawyers and law students at the Family and Veterans Advocacy Clinic at Texas A&M School of Law. Texas A&M Legal Clinics is a teaching law firm that provides a limited range of free legal services to the community. We offer these services free because they allow us to train a new generation of lawyers who meet the legal needs of their community. Our clinic provides legal services provided by Texas A&M law students who are mentored by experienced attorneys. What services we offer: Our clinical program provides legal services that help individuals and the community with: At Texas A&M School of Law, the classroom is just the starting point for a world-class legal education. Please also note that this form is for Texas A&M School of Law students who are applying to a clinic. This is not a request for clinical services or legal assistance. Potential clients: The application form for clinical services and legal aid is available at law.tamu.edu/legal-assistance. Thanks to generous grants from the Texas Access to Justice Foundation, we are able to support low-income clients, including veterans who live in Tarrant County and are eligible for our pro bono services. Our staff will ask questions about the applicant`s household income over the phone to all applicants who ask our legal counsel to determine eligibility. Just follow the instructions below to apply. Texas A&M University School of Law students, supervised by an experienced attorney, will handle your legal case.
Depending on how long it takes to resolve your case, your file may be transferred to another law student after the start of a new semester. Since we are an educational institution, we adhere to an academic calendar. Our clinic operates in the fall and spring semesters. Currently, the Community Development Clinic does not have the staff to handle large-scale litigation. The services we offer are generally transactional. However, we are available to assist community lawyers who provide legal representation on behalf of community organizations. Texas A&M Legal Clinics offers students the opportunity to apply their skills to work on behalf of real-life clients in a variety of practice areas. Clinical work provides students with hands-on experience through real-world interaction with clients.
The clinic`s program introduces students to a set of practical skills necessary to succeed in the legal profession. The clinic`s clients include business owners, nonprofits, government agencies and individuals who struggle to find advice elsewhere. Who is eligible for our services: For many of our clinics, only low-income clients living in Tarrant County are eligible for our services. Our staff will ask you questions about your income to determine if you qualify. The specific admission requirements for each clinic are indicated on the page of the respective clinic. The clinic is open from January to April (spring) and from August to November (fall), depending on the semesters of our academic calendar. Although many questions can be dealt with in a single semester, the academic calendar means that there are delays between work periods for questions that last more than one semester. These delays can range from five weeks (in winter) to three months (in summer). If your matter requires urgent or ongoing attention without delay, we recommend that you contact another legal service provider.
To request representation: To request representation, please click on the issue you need help with below, and the link will take you to the appropriate clinic page where you will need to fill out an intake form: Texas nonprofits, community organizations, and social entrepreneurs with limited financial resources who need legal advice are encouraged to apply. Clients are selected based on a variety of factors, including financial need, educational value to law students, potential for positive community impact, and timing. *Please note that the Family and Veteran Support Clinic does not accept email applications or walk-in applications in person at the clinic. Enquiries and inquiries should be made as follows: By submitting this application, you acknowledge that you understand that in order to participate in a clinic: (1) you have a good academic reputation and (2) you have successfully completed professional responsibility or ensure that you are registered at the same time. Please understand that clinical engagement is a serious work experience and we discourage students from simultaneously enrolling in an internship, articling or employment with another law firm, whether private, public or governmental. We will ask you to submit a conflict of interest form once you have been admitted to the clinic. Thank you for your interest in our clinics, where you will gain valuable knowledge and real-world experience in representing clients while helping our community. Submit the application below to apply. Please note that you must upload your resume to submit your clinic application. Law students working in our clinic under the supervision of experienced lawyers will talk to you about your problem.
If we accept your case, a team consisting of a law student and a lawyer will represent you. They research your legal problem, prepare briefs and documents, and represent you at court hearings if necessary, all under the constant supervision of a licensed lawyer with many years of experience. Please note that your case will be handled by a law student. If your case takes several months to resolve, another law student may take over your case at the beginning of the following semester. Although these students are still learning law, they are licensed by the Texas State Bar to serve as articling students and associate members of the state bar. To enroll in clinics, you must have a good academic reputation, have no violation of the code of honor, and have completed your courses in the first year (some clinics require completion of 45 units). Our clinics expose students to the real work of clients. To register for a fall or spring clinic, you must have fulfilled your professional responsibilities or be registered at the same time. Students who have not completed professional responsibility are automatically included in a section when they are admitted to a fall or spring clinic.
There are limited exceptions to this requirement, but only if a student has worked full-time in a law firm or other position that requires the treatment of confidential information for a year or more before attending law school. For summer clinics, professional liability is preferable, but not mandatory. Instead of the professional responsibility requirement, the summer clinic will include intensive ethics training. Each clinic may have its own admission requirements. Our Program Restrictions: Since we are an educational institution, we adhere to an academic calendar. The workload of clinics is reduced during the summer. Therefore, the best times to seek legal services are December-January and August-September. Students are advised to read the application and clinic registration information package before submitting an application. Students must submit an online application to register for a clinic. Clinic applications require a PDF CV uploaded. Only low-income clients living in Tarrant County are eligible for our services. Our staff will ask you questions about your income to determine if you qualify.
We represent both children and adults in our areas of activity. To request a performance: To request a performance, please call 817-212-4123. Please read the information package Applying and registering at the clinic. The Community Development Clinic supports non-profit organizations and social entrepreneurs who are committed to promoting social infrastructure in underserved communities.
