The Commons
Ideas, achievements, and events from around Duke Law School
AP Photo/Gregory Bull
Duke Law to launch immigration clinic A migrant who did not give his name waits with his children to apply for asylum in the United States, at the border in Tijuana, Mexico.
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uke Law School is expanding its nationally recognized clinical program with the launch of a new clinic focused on immigration law. When it opens in the next academic year, the Duke Law Immigration Clinic will offer students the opportunity to develop critical professional skills and deepen their knowledge of this increasingly important area of law while providing free legal services to immigrants who could not otherwise afford a lawyer. Supervised by clinic faculty, student-attorneys in the clinic will primarily represent individuals seeking asylum or facing deportation. “There’s a tremendous demand from our students to get experience working directly with clients on immigration matters and a great need for high-quality representation in low-income populations, including right here in our own community,” said Kerry Abrams, James B. Duke and Benjamin N. Duke Dean and professor of law, who teaches and writes
Duke Law Magazine • Spring 2019
on immigration law. “We look forward to serving this need while training future lawyers to do this important work throughout their careers.” An immigration clinic recently emerged as a strategic priority for Duke, in part due to student interest. In 2016, a group of 1Ls revived a student organization that provided pro bono legal support, research assistance, and advocacy to immigrants, and they later merged it with student groups serving refugees and asylum-seekers. Groups of students have also spent the last two spring breaks volunteering with legal organizations at immigrant detention centers in Texas and Florida. “The demand is there,” said Dan Pham ’19, director of the Immigrant and Refugee Project. “A lot of people have approached me asking, ‘What can I do?’” The Immigration Clinic will be the Law School’s 12th clinic. While the existing clinics are housed in a dedicated wing of the Law School, Duke is seeking to
