Animal Law Clinic I

Animal Law Clinic I 

• Course Number: LAW-788
• Course Type: Highly Specialized & Experiential
• Credits: 3
• Enrollment Limit: 6
• Description: The Animal Law Clinic (Clinic) works on local, national, and international animal law issues in addition to working with the state and local community. Students conduct research, represent clients, and work on clinic projects to develop the field of animal law and encourage consideration of the interests of animals in legal decision-making. Clinic work includes: policy, legislative, transactional, and administrative law work; occasional litigation work; research; advocacy; and strategic planning. When appropriate, students also work with other lawyers as well as community members, veterinarians, scientists, economists, and other professionals. 

  The work of Clinic students includes: research, analysis and writing; petitions to state and federal agencies; comments on proposed regulations; FOIA and state public records requests; legal investigations; presentations to law students, clients, and community groups; responses to media requests for information; drafting and reviewing organizational policies; drafting legislation and lobbying; amicus briefs; and researching and drafting complaints and motions. Students also write policy papers, blog posts, guidance documents, items for newsletters and law review articles.

  The Clinic is designed to help students develop their legal research, analysis, and writing skills while also learning about drafting, strategic decision-making, litigation, negotiation, mediation, ethical practice, and advocacy. The Clinic provides an opportunity for students to gain real-world experience working with clients as well the chance to develop their professional skills.

  Students participate in a weekly two-hour class covering substantive issues and lawyering skills, meet weekly with clinic faculty to discuss their work, and spend an average of ten hours per week on clinic work. While the clinic will not include a separate ethics portion for credit, students will be exposed to, and learn about, professionalism and ethics critical to being an effective legal advocate.

  Students must also enroll in Animal Law Clinic II when it is offered in the same academic year. There is no application process.

• Prerequisite: Animal Law Fundamentals (previously offered as Animals in the Law) 
• Evaluation Method: Credit/no credit based on written work completed in the course
• Capstone: no
• WIE: Depends; Professor consent is needed.