Northumbria- A case study

Open to the public

Works like a lawyer’s office

A large clinic – 173 students

Well established – over 30 years

Full casework model - 400 cases per annum

£205,000 last year

Range of legal areas

Employment Housing Consumer Family Welfare Benefits Human rights Crime and miscarriages of justice Civil Prison law Charities Business advice environmental

Compulsory

Graded

40% of the students’ final year

Key learning outcomes of the law degree programme are delivered through the office

Oral communication and Interviewing Problem solving Practical Legal Research Legal Writing and Drafting Autonomy Team work Reflective practice and lifelong learning Professional training requirements The ability to critically analyse the law

Year 2 – Interviewing experience, problem based learning, legal drafting

Year 3 – simulated file management, interviewing, problem based learning

Providing clinical education to other students not on the main undergraduate programme

All staff are on academic contracts

Half of those who staff the clinic have other academic teaching duties in the school

Non-clinicans are quite often called upon for expertise

Journal

Conference (Durham 11-13th July 2012)

Research

Identify a source of income Appoint a clinic director. Credit that director

with workload. Don’t underestimate the scale of their task

Ensure the clinic director has access to the decision maker(s) in the faculty

Decide the role of students/other faculty in making decisions about the clinic

Ensure the clinic is appropriately supervised by qualified staff

Not for profit advice agencies

Government legal aid agencies

Individual lawyers pro bono

Individual law firms pro bono

Professional Bodies

Advice and referral only? Open to members of the university only? Limited areas of law? Limited inherent risk in cases? – high value?

Emergencies? Short time limits? When will you be open? What happens in university holidays? Have

you sufficient cover in the event of illness/absence ?

Admin support – paid/student? Space to work Space to meet Space to interview Filing Paper Post library IT Insurance

•Educate and involve the law faculty•Make the pedagogic case for clinic•Try to ensure core income is assured ( from the university?)•Build research capacity-develop reputation•Place clinic at the heart of the learning experience•Get policy makers on side

•Educate and involve the law faculty•Make the pedagogic case for clinic•Try to ensure core income is assured ( from the university?)•Build research capacity-develop reputation•Place clinic at the heart of the learning experience•Get policy makers on side

Get the profession on side•Better new lawyers for them•Corporate social responsibility?

Get the profession on side•Better new lawyers for them•Corporate social responsibility?

Use the clinic to attract new studentsPrepare the studentsInvolve the students?

Use the clinic to attract new studentsPrepare the studentsInvolve the students?

University,faculty and academic communityUniversity,faculty and academic community profession

Public studentsstudents

•Awards, publications•General Publicity – tv, newspapers, internet

•

Top tips for sustaining an in-house clinic

•Educate and involve the law faculty

•Make the pedagogic case for clinic

•Try to ensure core income is assured ( from the university?)

•Build research capacity-develop reputation

•Place clinic at the heart of the learning experience

•Get policy makers on side

•Educate and involve the law faculty

•Make the pedagogic case for clinic

•Try to ensure core income is assured ( from the university?)

•Build research capacity-develop reputation

•Place clinic at the heart of the learning experience

•Get policy makers on side

University,faculty and academic communityUniversity,faculty and academic community

Use the clinic to attract new students

Prepare the students

Involve the students in management?

Use the clinic to attract new students

Prepare the students

Involve the students in management?

studentsstudents

Top tips for sustaining an in-house clinic

•Awards, publications•General Publicity

– tv, newspapers, internet

•Awards, publications•General Publicity

– tv, newspapers, internet

Public

Get the profession on side

•Better new lawyers for them

•Corporate social responsibility?

Get the profession on side

•Better new lawyers for them

•Corporate social responsibility?

profession

Northumbria’s experience of going beyond the in-house full case model

Approx 40 students

For students on other programmes

Voluntary

Not assessed

Joint clinic project with local law firm◦ Drop in advice◦ Some supervision provided by the law firm◦ Some provided by clinic staff◦ Includes referral system

Benefits for law firm

Increase client base Preview students as

potential trainees Publicity Fulfil corporate

responsibility

Benefits for clinic/students

Contact with local profession

Expose students to law office

Intense learning experience

Insurance Supervision Admin support needed Clinic staff time

Shelter advice worker to email enquiry to Student Law Office

Enquiry passed via supervisor to student to prepare draft practical legal research, and

advice letter for supervisor within 2 weeks Supervisor to amend these to be sent back

to Shelter within deadline of 3 weeks

http://sonarjohn.files.wordpress.com/2007/03/partnership-20picture-20cartoon.jpg

Discipline working within tight deadlines

Developed skills – research and written communications, time management

Gave comparative experience of clinical work- but reflective aspect to be developed further

Wide range of housing enquiries

Student volunteers Trained by CAB to carry out ‘gateway

advice’- a form of triage Supervised entirely by CAB staff CAB qualification at the end

Compulsory (and assessed) or voluntary? Who takes ownership- and responsibility? Any admin support needed? Safeguarding your reputation for excellence Protecting the interests of students...