JUDICIAL EXTERNSHIPS: SPRING 2003 SEMESTER
FOR
SECOND AND THIRD YEAR STUDENTS WITH A MINIMUM 3.25 G.P.A.
Judicial Externship is a 4-credit hour non-graded program
open to students in their second and third year who want
to do legal research and writing for federal court judges
and magistrate judges.
The program provides externs with the opportunity to work
with a judge and/or the judge's law clerks by researching
law, writing memoranda and drafting opinions. An extern
also has the opportunity to observe the day-to-day routine
of the courtroom and to discuss with the judge or the judge's
law clerk those legal problems which judges confront in
their courtroom.
Take advantage of this prestigious opportunity while enhancing
your marketability in the legal world!
Application Process
If you have any questions about the program or the application
process, contact Prof. V. Gross in Room 617. E-mail: vgross@kentlaw.edu
Applications for Spring 2003 Judicial Externships are available
both in the Law Offices Reception Area (Room 600) and in
the Career Services Offices.
Completed applications should be submitted to Ms. Carole
Ross, Secretary to Professor Gross, Room 612, Law Offices,
by Friday, October 11, 2002, at 5:00 p.m.
EMPLOYMENT/GENERAL LITIGATION CLINIC
FIGHTS FOR RIGHT TO FILE RACIAL DISCRIMINATION CLAIM
A Law Office's client was featured prominently in a full-page
story in Sunday's Tribune, September 23rd edition about
employers who force employees to sign mandatory arbitration
agreements which give up the right to bring a civil rights
suit against the employer. Professor Gonzalez and his students
are fighting for his right to take his racial discrimination
claim to court, despite having signed the mandatory waiver
along with several other papers on his first day of work.
The Tribune used the Chicago-Kent client as the basis for
its expose of deceitful employer practices.
FIRST DEFENSE LEGAL AID (FDLA) CLINIC
SUES COOK COUNTY STATE'S ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
AND CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT
First Defense Legal Aid (FDLA) is a free, 24-hour legal
service for adults and children, which fills the gap in
the public defender system by providing representation to
people at their earliest entry in the criminal justice system
but not yet charged.
Recently, FDLA has faced serious problems from the police
and prosecutors in gaining access to its clients. As a result,
FDLA filed a federal law suit in December 2001 against the
Cook County State's Attorney's office and the Chicago Police
Department. On September 9, 2002, FDLA won an important
victory in the Federal District Court when U. S. District
Court Judge Milton Shadur enjoined the Chicago Police Department
from prohibiting FDLA attorneys from meeting with and speaking
to their clients being held at Chicago police stations.
The injunction also requires the police "to immediately
inform the person being held that an attorney is present
seeking to counsel him and shall ascertain from the person
being held whether he or she wishes to consult with the
attorney."
FDLA is a clinical program at Chicago Kent. It is open
to 711 eligible students who actively participate with FDLA
attorneys in representing clients. For more information
about FDLA you can email FDLA at frstdefens@aol.com.
CHICAGO-KENT ESTABLISHES A FAMILY LAW
CLINIC
Attorney Ira C. Feldman is named to
head new clinical education program
Chicago-Kent College of Law has established
a clinical program in family law. The family law clinic
will operate on a sliding scale fee basis, depending on
the financial circumstances of the parties. The clinic
will represent clients in matters limited to cases to
be brought before the Cook County Circuit Court. Client
referrals will be actively sought from the practicing
bar, labor unions, employee groups, and educational institutions.
In addition, the clinical program will provide
a teaching platform for Chicago-Kent students who are
interested in practicing in the area of family law. All
student work will be under the direct supervision of an
attorney.
Attorney Ira C. Feldman has been named to
oversee the new program. Prior to his appointment, Feldman
was a partner at the law firm of Wildman, Harrold, Allen
and Dixon. From 1981 to 1991, he was a partner at Naumark,
Bonner and Feldman. Between 1975 and 1981, he headed Feldman
and Associates. Feldman completed his undergraduate at
American University and earned his law degree at the university’s
Washington College of Law.
“Professor Feldman is a highly regarded and experienced
practitioner of family law. He will expand the services
of the Chicago-Kent Law Offices to include representation
in matters of legal separation, divorce, child support,
child custody, visitation, guardianships and other related
matters,” said Professor Gary S. Laser director of clinical
education.
Chicago-Kent Law Offices was established
in 1976. The program is a fee-generating teaching law
firm that provides clinical practice experiences under
the close supervision of teaching attorneys. The program
delivers outstanding legal services to its clients and
provides high-quality clinical education to more than
150 students each semester. Practice areas include employment
discrimination and civil rights, general practice, criminal
defense, health law, alternative dispute resolution, tax
law, and an advice desk program at the Daley Center.
Chicago-Kent College of Law is the law school
of Illinois Institute of Technology, a private, Ph.D.-granting
institution with programs in engineering, science, psychology,
architecture, business, design and law. Last year, Chicago-Kent
educated more than 1,200 students from 45 states and more
than 100 colleges and universities.
FIRST DEFENSE LEGAL AID
First Defense Legal Aid (FDLA), the only program
of its kind in the country, fills the gap in Illinois' public
defender system by providing 24-hour free legal representation
to adults and children in police custody or under police
investigation. FDLA provides a unique "frontline"
criminal defense experience for students, enabling them
to see: how evidence is collected and created; the tactics
of the Chicago Police Department when trying to extract
a confession or question witnesses; the role that the Cook
County State's Attorney's Felony Review Team plays during
the beginning stages of a criminal investigation; and the
utter vulnerability of children and adults when under intensive
and sometimes abusive interrogation. In addition to this
stationhouse representation, FDLA also works toward the
permanent improvement of our criminal justice system by
educating the public, organizing community residents to
combat police misconduct, by engaging in legislative and
community advocacy, investigating patterns of misconduct
by the Chicago Police, taking select criminal defense cases
to trial, and initiating 42 U.S.C. §1983 litigation
to improve the policies and procedures of the Chicago Police
as they relate to the treatment of persons in police custody.
Students participating in the FDLA class must
be eligible for a Illinois Supreme Court Rule 711 license.
Students representing FDLA clients at Chicago Police Stations
will gain unique insight into the criminal justice system
at its earliest stage and be able to:
1. View and Document Line-Ups, DNA testing,
and Halt Lie Detector Tests.
2. Assert a Client's 5th Amendment Right to Remain Silent
and 6th Amendment Right to Counsel.
3. Gather Information from the Police on the Progress of
the Investigation.
4. Document Police Brutality and other Misconduct.
5. Counsel Clients and Provide Information to their Families.
6. Interview Witnesses.
7. Demand a Client's Immediate Release at the Police Station
and in Court.
Students will be trained to provide legal
representation to adults and children under criminal investigation.
In addition to a weekly, one-hour class (Mondays from 5:00
p.m. to 6:00 p.m.), students will be available to represent
persons in custody six hours each week and actually go to
the police station to represent them. Students will be provided
with pagers and FDLA will reimburse transportation expenses.
Three supervising attorneys will be available at all times
to assist students and provide support. For more information,
contact Presita R. May, at 773/602-5144, or presita2000@aol.com
.
LOW INCOME TAXPAYERS CLINIC
For information on the Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic, please
visit the website:
http://www.kentlaw.edu/academics/clinic/tax/
LAW OFFICES OF CHICAGO-KENT
The Law Offices of Chicago-Kent offers nine long-standing
programs in live-client clinical legal education which accommodate
over 150 students in the fall and spring semesters and over
50 students in the summer semester.
For a complete description of all clinical programs, please
visit the Law Offices' Home Page at www.kentlaw.edu/academics/clinic.
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