Clinic Newsletter Fall 2011 by Southwestern Law School

FALL 2011

SOUTHWESTERN LAW SCHOOL

CLINIC

NEWSLETTER

CHILDREN’S RIGHTS, IMMIGRATION LAW AND STREET LAW

CLINICS

CLINIC STUDENTS PARTNER WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION ATTORNEY On Upcoming District Court Appeal s part of their Children’s Rights Clinic casework this past Spring, students Andrew Katon ’11 and Sun Young Kim ’11 partnered with local special education attorney Susan Snowden to appeal an administrative law decision to the U.S. District Court, Central District of California. Both students did extensive research on the issues on appeal, which Ms. Snowden used to form the basis of the complaint. The issues on appeal include whether a school psychologist is required to provide testing materials and data in connection with a previously conducted psycho-educational assessment as part of the documentation requested in a subpoena duces tecum. The opposing school district did not provide such records requested by the petitioner in the administrative hearing and the administrative law judge determined that because petitioner could not prove that the school district willfully suppressed the testing data, the lack of production of such information was not a material violation. Because plaintiffs were unable to challenge the adequacy of the assessment at the hearing, plaintiffs’ right to cross-examine the District’s school psychologist at the hearing was significantly impaired and, therefore, plaintiffs’ right to participate fully and fairly in the due process hearing was denied, resulting in a denial of a free appropriate public education (“FAPE”) to the student. During Summer 2011, the Children’s Rights Clinic’s summer extern, Kimberly Nicole Maruyama ’12, dissected the hearing transcript, targeting key areas in the document that support plaintiff’s argument on appeal. Ms. Snowden used this to formulate her opening statements and oral arguments that will be presented before the Court this Fall.

“It feels great to have been able to have a positive impact on their lives, and both students and the school were very appreciative of our Street Law Clinic.” – Johnny Rundell ‘12 (See page 6 for his complete “Reflections on the Clinic Experience”)

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: 2 Children’s Rights Clinic 4 Immigration Law Clinic 6 Street Law Clinic and Public Service Program

STILL DREAMING FOR HOPE Community Outreach Efforts Benefit High School Students s part of the Southwestern Immigration Law Clinic’s community outreach efforts, Spring 2011 clinic students organized Still DREAMing for Hope, an awareness and fundraising event for an AB (Assembly Bill) 540 club from a local high school in Boyle Heights, California. The DREAM Act is the proposed federal legislation that would create a path to legalization for undocumented students who meet certain criteria (students who may potentially qualify if the DREAM Act passes have adopted the title "DREAMers"), and AB 540 refers to a California law that allows certain undocumented students to pay in-state tuition at California public colleges and universities. At the event, the clinic students generated discussion about AB 540 issues and raised money for scholarships benefitting the high school students in Boyle Heights who plan to attend college. Attendees included Southwestern students, faculty members and their families as well as immigration attorneys and community members. Through this project, clinic students learned collaboration skills associated with grassroots organizing and community education, expanded their tools for addressing social problems and further developed their understanding of public interest work.

SAVE THE DATE! Legal Clinic Open House

March 16, 2012 (details on back page)

Legal Clinic Information Session

March 14, 2012

Legal Clinic Applications for the 2012-2013 Year Due

March 30, 2012

Southwestern’s Children’s Rights Clinic (CRC) provides representation to low-income children in the areas of school discipline, special education and other education related issues. The clinic is staffed by law students who represent clients under the supervision of Professors Julie Waterstone and Jenny Rodriguez-Fee. Students have the opportunity in a real-life context to hone their lawyering skills such as interviewing, negotiating, counseling, pre-trial litigation and oral advocacy.

“Thank you so much for teaching me how to be a lawyer and how to properly represent children and their families. I will never forget my first experiences in the clinic.” – Deborah Kahn ’12

DID YOU KNOW? n

In addition to special education and school discipline advocacy, last semester CRC students worked on civil rights issues as well. Elizabeth Merritt ’11, Liza Davis ’12 and Arcine Mananian ’12 each worked on two separate discrimination complaints to the California Office of Civil Rights, pursuant to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, based on retaliatory measures taken by school districts against clients.

In addition to their advocacy, Spring 2011 CRC students conducted extensive research in three unique areas, including the current state of community day school (CDS) placements for expelled and/or delinquent youth, the country’s current attitudes about bullying and the dynamics behind the creation of a “bully,” and police interrogation of students in school. The goal of their research was to arrive at possible resolutions for each issue, whether through impact litigation, legislative reform efforts or some other creative measure. Students were required to describe the problem, gather data about the nature and extent of the problem, propose a response to the problem or identify the appropriate way to challenge the problem, and present their findings to the class. The intent was to provide students with an opportunity to explore ways to challenge an issue facing clients. The result was incredibly creative solutions to the complex issues.

CRC students involved in “due process” for their clients, drafted and filed complaints with the Office of Administrative Hearings; represented their clients at resolution sessions, mediations and hearings before Administrative Law Judges; and negotiated settlement agreements with attorneys representing school districts throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

The Children’s Rights Clinic has streamlined its classroom teaching with the introduction of a new textbook, co-edited by our very own Professor Julie Waterstone. The text, Special Education Advocacy (LexisNexis Publishing, 2011), not only provides our students with the necessary law, but includes detailed hypotheticals and in-class simulation exercises to help illustrate a practical application of everything the students are learning in the classroom. The text has received rave reviews from colleagues throughout the country and is being adopted as the assigned text for clinical programs in such schools as the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law, Duke University School of Law, American University Washington College of Law, and William and Mary Law School.

CLINIC STUDENTS AND FACULTY ATTEND SOCIAL JUSTICE RETREAT outhwestern’s clinics were well represented at the 13th Annual Trina Grillo Social Justice Retreat held at the University of San Francisco Law School this past March. The retreat’s theme was “Human Rights Here and Abroad.” As a new participant, Southwestern made a notable debut with six attendees, including Professor Julie Waterstone, Director of the Children’s Rights Clinic; Professor Jenny Rodriguez-Fee, Supervising Attorney in the Children’s Rights Clinic; and Professor Julia Vázquez, Supervising Attorney in the Immigration Law Clinic; and students Karla Cortez ’11, Chris Treiber ’11 and Vanessa Rodriguez ’12. The retreat provided a unique opportunity for public interest and social justice-oriented law students, faculty and practitioners to exchange viewpoints, explore career opportunities and formulate strategies for social justice. Professor Waterstone presented her expertise on children’s rights during The U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child and the U.S. panel. Professor Vázquez presented her forthcoming research on “Undocumented Student Organizing: A Call to the Law Student Ally” during The Battlefield for Immigration Reform panel. According to the Southwestern student contingent, the empowering and inspiring speakers at the retreat “reminded them of why [they] chose to go to law school in the first place.”

WHAT STUDENTS ARE SAYING Deborah Kahn ’12 participated in the Children’s Rights Clinic in Spring 2011 and was one of three students selected to participate in a special year-long externship with the Children’s Law Center (CLC). In a letter to her professors, Deborah said: “When I met my supervising attorney at CLC, I can't tell you how impressed she was by all the things I was telling her about my experiences in the Children's Rights Clinic. I felt so confident today walking into court, since we had already learned and touched upon some of the education issues and the education/dependency law overlap quite a bit. I really wanted to let you both know what an inspiration you are. Thank you so much for teaching me how to be a lawyer and how to properly represent children and their families. I will never forget my first experiences in the clinic.”

CHILDREN’S RIGHTS CLINIC

SPRING 2011 AT A GLANCE he diligent work of our CRC students throughout the Spring 2011 semester resulted in several successes for children with special needs. Here is a brief recap:

T n

Sun Kim and Andrew Katon represented a 13-year-old foster youth at an expulsion hearing where the school district attempted to expel her for possession of a pocket knife. The young girl had kept this pocket knife (resembling a Swiss Army knife in size and dimension) because it belonged to her father who she had not visited in a long time. When it was established that the girl had never been in trouble at school before and had maintained a 3.5 GPA despite a serious auditory processing disorder, the school district unanimously decided not to expel and agreed to work with the family to provide more support and services to the student while in school, given her special needs.

Leslie Kolafa and Prisca Lim drafted and filed a due process complaint simultaneously against two school districts for failure to provide necessary support and services to a young child with autism. This child was placed in a classroom for over a year that school officials admitted was entirely inappropriate for this student’s significant academic deficits. Leslie and Prisca negotiated complicated settlements between both school districts, which weighed significantly in their client’s favor.

Elizabeth Merritt and Liza Davis drafted and filed a due process complaint against a school district for failure to provide appropriate placement, supervision and services to a student with severe cerebral palsy. This student used a wheelchair, had a gastro-intestinal tube, required frequent suctioning of his mouth and nose, had severe cognitive and other health deficits, and required a one-to-one assistant throughout his school day. Every time a piece of his medical equipment malfunctioned, this student was suspended from school and sent home until the equipment was fixed or replaced. This could sometimes take weeks, and the student therefore went without educational services and support for more than three months, a significant violation of state and federal law. In addition, the school made false accusations against the family and filed a frivolous report with the Department of Child and Family Services. Elizabeth and Liza successfully filed and settled the due process claim against the school, resulting in compensatory education time for the student and attorneys’ fees. They also drafted a retaliation complaint against the school with the California Office of Civil Rights.

Jennifer Chang and Arcine Mananian successfully advocated on behalf of a young girl with autism who was inappropriately removed from the special education system and denied necessary support and services. The students were able to secure an independent evaluation from an outside assessor who supported our claim of the inappropriate exit from special education. Jennifer and Arcine also represented the young girl and her mother at a meeting with the school where the independent assessor’s report was presented and the school ultimately agreed to reestablish the student’s eligibility for special education.

Hillary Higgins and Deborah Kahn advocated on behalf of a young boy with severe attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder who, despite having a special education plan in place, was failing to make progress and was testing well below average in comparison to students in his same age group. Because the boy’s mother is a monolingual Spanish speaker, Hillary and Deborah navigated the complexity that comes with use of a translator in representation which helped to improve their own language skills during their advocacy. The students obtained an independent evaluation funded by the school district to determine why the boy’s educational plan was not working. At a meeting with the school to discuss the results of this evaluation, Hillary and Deborah successfully advocated for additional services and support for the boy, including a smaller classroom environment and communication logs between home and school. A recent status check on this client indicated that he is making tremendous progress since these additional services were implemented.

(Spring 2011 CRC students included: Jennifer Chang, Liza Davis, Hillary Higgins, Deborah Kahn, Andrew Katon, Sun Kim, Leslie Kolafa, Prisca Lim, Arcine Mananian and Elizabeth Merritt. Kristen Cortez, Christopher Treiber and Heather Walters participated in the Advanced Clinic, having participated in the general CRC Clinic in Fall 2010.)

CHILDREN’S RIGHTS CLINIC FAST FACTS n

26 law students participated in the CRC, representing approximately 55 clients and providing brief legal assistance to approximately 45 additional individuals.

Students advocated for clients at 8 mediations, 3 expulsion hearings, 1 expulsion appeal and approximately 50 school negotiations.

Students provided over 4,500 hours in legal services in the areas of special education, school discipline and regional center advocacy.

Students were able to secure approximately 500 hours in education therapy for our clients, 3 reversed expulsion recommendations and obtained approximately $42,150 in legal fees through successful settlements at mediation and resolution sessions.

Students conducted 2 community presentations on Southwestern’s campus with approximately 30 parents in attendance at each presentation.

Students trained an additional 30 advocates and staff at the Office of Clients Rights Advocates in Los Angeles. Please note: Facts and figures represent the 2010-2011 academic year.

Southwestern’s Immigration Law Clinic (ILC) provides free legal representation to low-income children and adults in Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) (clients under the age of 21), Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and U visa cases. The Clinic is staffed by law students who represent clients under the supervision of Professors Andrea Ramos and Julia Vázquez.

CLINIC OBTAINS RESIDENCY STATUS For Victim of a Drive-by Shooting ur client is a true survivor. During her junior year of high school, she was shot while waiting for a bus in front of her high school in Woodland Hills, California. Moments before the shooting, she saw a car with three young men drive up to the bus stop. She then saw the passenger pull out a gun and fire at the crowd of high school students. She turned to run but was hit in the back. The bullet entered her back, broke her rib, touched her lung, injured her arm and broke her jaw. She fell to the ground and began coughing blood, as she spit out the bullet. Our client bravely testified against the perpetrators at the criminal trial. She was a key witness because she had seen the shooter at close range. The three men were convicted by a jury and are now in prison. Congress created the U visa* to help victims such as our client. Professor Andrea Ramos, Director of the Immigration Law Clinic, met the young woman about eight months after the shooting and obtained a U Visa for her and her parents. After the requisite time period, clinic students Jacqueline Almodovar ’10 and Judy Nguyen ’10 obtained residency status for all three of them.

*The U visa is available to non-citizens who suffer substantial physical or mental abuse as a result of having been a victim of certain criminal activity and cooperate in the investigation or prosecution of the crime. More details available at www.immigrationlawclinic.org.

“This clinical experience was incredible, and the knowledge I have acquired is helping me greatly in my current immigration externship.” – Cynthia Valdez ‘11

A NOTE FROM PROFESSOR RAMOS ur young Special Immigrant Juvenile Status** (SIJS) clients arrived for their closing meeting with a bouquet of roses for their student attorney and student translator. They beamed when the student gave them their Permanent Resident cards. At the end of the meeting, our 10-year old client began reading a letter to us, and he broke down crying. His grandmother explained that he is a bright and sensitive boy who understood the significance of his new status. He wrote the letter because he wanted to express his gratitude for our work:

Thank you for working so hard in getting us our residency. Me and my brother highly appreciate it. It has been a dream come true for us to finally receive our residency. Our family couldn’t thank you enough for all your time and effort you put in our case. You’re a great person. We will never forget what you’ve done for us. Throughout the clinic experience, we know we touch our client’s lives in significant ways. As permanent residents, our clients have the opportunity to become contributing members of our communities and have the chance to lead stable and happy lives. The clinic, in turn, gives students the opportunity to use their newly acquired skills and apply them to real cases. Each week, we teach students the substantive law, and each day at the clinic, students use that knowledge to work on their cases. In the end, students make a real difference in someone’s life and learn the value of public service. **SIJS is a way for certain undocumented children to obtain lawful permanent resident status (a green card). A child may be eligible for SIJS if she is under the jurisdiction of a juvenile court, placed in the custody of a state agency or department, or placed in the custody of an individual (e.g. a guardian), and whose reunification with one or both parents is not viable due to abuse, neglect, abandonment or a similar basis under state law. The juvenile court must determine that it is in the minor's best interest to remain in the United States and not be returned to her home country. The child must be under the age of 21 (at the time the application is filed) and not married.

FORMER CLINIC STUDENT EXTERNS AT PUBLIC COUNSEL ormer ILC student Liz Gonzalez ‘12 is externing with the Immigrants' Rights Project at Public Counsel and is primarily working on asylum claims with individuals from Mexico, Chile, Cameroon and Sudan. A few of her clients are transgender, homosexual or female victims of persecution based on gender. Using the skills she obtained at Southwestern, Liz conducts intakes and prepares declarations and researches country conditions. She is also working in the Legal Orientation Program, providing free legal advice to detainees at the Santa Ana City Jail facing possible removal.

STUDENT WORKS ON APPEAL Based on Domestic Violence Asylum Claim he Spring 2011 Immigration Appeals Practicum (IAP), in partnership with Munger, Tolles & Olson (MTO), continued to provide appellate representation to low income immigrants who would have otherwise gone unrepresented. IAP student George Ashkar ’11 worked closely with MTO attorney Richard Chen, to research, prepare and draft an appellate brief to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) for a mother and daughter denied asylum by the Immigration Court. George work intensely during the course of one month to review the transcripts of hearings before the Immigration Judge and develop the factual and legal theory of the case. George’s compelling brief conveyed the story of a mother and daughter who were victims of horrible violence in Guatemala. The client and her young daughter fled the country because they feared for their safety. The appellate brief forcefully argued that the client was persecuted for her membership in the particular social group: “Guatemalan Women In Domestic Relationships Who Are Unable To Leave.” In addition to the substantive asylum claims, George crafted an argument which illustrated possible due process violations at the Immigration Court proceeding. The case is currently pending.

REFLECTIONS ON THE CLINIC EXPERIENCE CYNTHIA VALDEZ ‘11 “As part of the clinic, I was able to learn about immigration law and then put all of my knowledge to work with real cases. I interviewed clients, wrote declarations, completed immigration forms and put immigration application packets together. I also shared my immigration knowledge with the community, and raised awareness about immigrant rights and possible immigration relief. This clinical experience was incredible, and the knowledge I have acquired helped me greatly in my summer externship at HIV & AIDS Legal Services Aliiance’s Immigrant Rights Program.”

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: CYNTHIA CASTELLON LUNA lumna Cynthia Castellon Luna ‘10, was recently chosen as the first Southern California Equal Justice Works Americorps Fellow for the OneJustice™ organization. She will be working out of the new Los Angeles-based office and will be coordinating programs for Spring 2012 at Southwestern. OneJustice is a statewide legal services nonprofit organization that works with all of California’s legal services organizations to support and improve their organizational development and infrastructure. OneJustice also gives nonprofit leaders the skills they need to most effectively run their organizations. This translates into more people getting the help they need more efficiently and effectively every day. As a Southwestern student, Ms. Luna dedicated much of her time to public interest work, including summer positions at the HIV & AIDS Legal Services Alliance (HALSA) and the Harriet Buhai Center for Family Law. She also participated in the Children’s Rights Clinic and Southwestern’s first Justice Bus® trip, and was co-president of the Latino Law Students Association and treasurer of the Public Interest Law Committee. She received a Public Interest Law Service Award for her ongoing commitment. As an Equal Justice Works Americorp Legal Fellow at OneJustice, Ms. Luna will be organizing the Justice Bus trips for Southern California and working with legal service organizations to ensure that legal help is delivered to clients in need in rural areas of California. She will also work with other organizations to increase access to legal help for underserved Californians by building infrastructure and partnerships in the legal community. For more about Ms. Luna’s appointment, visit www.swlaw.edu/news/releases.

CONTACT US Legal Clinic • W408 (Westmoreland Building, 4th Floor) Southwestern Law School 3050 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90010

CALLING ALL ALUMNI! Please send your clinic stories, memories and high-res photos for a possible upcoming feature in our newsletter to legalclinic@swlaw.edu.

Children’s Rights Clinic (213) 738-6621 childrensrights@swlaw.edu

Immigration Law Clinic (213) 738-5574 immigrationclinic@swlaw.edu

Street Law Clinic (213) 738-5737 streetlaw@swlaw.edu www.swlaw.edu/academics/clinic

Southwestern’s Street Law Clinic (SLC) students teach critical legal life skills to high school students in our Los Angeles community under the supervision of Professor Laura Cohen. Law students step into the roles of teacher, mentor, and advocate to empower atrisk youth to make better choices, overcome adversity, and build stronger futures. The participatory lessons inform the teenagers about their rights and the laws that apply to them, and provide legal information and resources they need to successfully transition to independent living and adulthood.

STREET LAW CLINIC

SPRING 2011 AT A GLANCE

uring the Spring 2011 semester, 12 law students participated in the Street Law Clinic. These law students created engaging lesson plans that helped their teenage students “understand their rights” focusing resources and information on housing, education, employment and consumer issues. The students also encouraged these youth throughout Los Angeles to grow both emotionally and academically:

Marissa Hertzberg and Amy Huberman collaborated with attorney volunteers from the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Southern California Chapter at Susan M. Dorsey High School's Law and Public Service Magnet School in Los Angeles.

Iorai Cohen and Chris Trieber taught our Street Law class to adolescent boys at Hathaway-Sycamores school-based program on Glendale High School’s campus.

Loni Harada and Shawna Wright taught our Street Law class at the Vista School at Vista Del Mar in West Los Angeles.

David Brown and Brian Nguyen taught our Street Law class at Monterey Continuation High School in Monterey Park.

Dana Branen, Raha Johartchi, Edith Madrid and Johnny Rundell taught all the seniors at Los Angeles Leadership Academy, preparing them for their post-graduate experiences.

“The Street Law Clinic provides an amazing opportunity to expand your legal skills while educating the youth about the law and how it will affect them as adults. In addition, teaching in front of a classroom was a great way to become a more confident public speaker, something key to being a good lawyer. ”

REFLECTIONS ON THE CLINIC EXPERIENCE JOHNNY RUNDELL ‘12 “The Street Law Clinic provides an amazing opportunity to expand your legal skills while educating the youth about the law and how it will affect them as adults. As a Street Law Clinic participant, you gain substantive legal knowledge and improve your communication skills. Throughout the semester, practicing attorneys spoke to our class, and we took field trips to various courts and juvenile facilities, which helped to facilitate our learning, because you can see the practical application of the law. In addition, teaching in front of a classroom was a great way to become a more confident public speaker, something key to being a good lawyer. Working with the high school students was the most rewarding part of the Street Law Clinic for me. I was a little nervous the first day, but over the semester I was really able to know my class of students through meeting with them individually, in addition to teaching them, offering legal information and answering their questions. At the end of the semester, we prepared individualized resource binders to each of our students to help them in their future endeavors. It feels great to have been able to have a positive impact on their lives, and both students and the school were very appreciative of our Street Law Clinic.”

PUBLIC INTEREST LAW AWARDS rofessor Laura Cohen, Director of the Street Law Clinic and Community Outreach, presented several graduating students with Public Interest Awards at Southwestern’s Spring 2011 Public Service Awards Luncheon. They included the George and Katrina Woolverton Public Service Award recipient Gibran Bouayad, and Southwestern Public Interest Law Service Award recipients Jennifer Chang, Karla Cortez, Stephanie Herrick and Candace Jones. Special recognition was also given to 2011 Public Interest Grant recipients who spent the summer clerking with nonprofit organizations that provide free or low-cost legal assistance to low-income or marginalized individuals and underserved communities. The recipients were Dana Branen, Matthew Brinton, Kevin Cauley, Kristen Cortez, Kate Glaspey, Liz Gonzalez, Ely Grinvald, Nazgole Hashemi, Deborah Kahn, Remy Krumpak, Katherine Lawrence, Kaley Lichtman, Stacy Madden, Edith Madrid, Angelica Merida, Christopher Mohr, Danielle Nottea, Jared Olen, Thien-Thu Pham, Kimberly Repecka, Johnny Rundell, Cynthia Valdez and Joel Zari.

– Johnny Rundell ‘12 (Spring 2011 Public Service Awards Luncheon)

A NOTE FROM PROFESSOR COHEN outhwestern’s Public Service Program (PSP) supports our policy that encourages all students to perform at least 25 hours of pro bono public service each academic year. Students who complete 25 hours of pro bono public service in a year receive a formal letter of recognition from the Dean. Furthermore, students who perform at least 75 hours of public service throughout their law school experience are recognized at commencement ceremonies and the notation “Public Service Distinction” is placed on their law school transcript. This year, we celebrated our law student volunteers at our Annual Public Service Awards Luncheon on April 7 with Lisa Mead, Directing Attorney of Southern California OneJustice, as our keynote speaker. She shared many words of inspiration, while noting our very successful year of volunteering, with over 200 students who participated in PSP – together they volunteered over 7,000 hours. The volunteer opportunities vary as to who they serve, the requirements for participation, the longevity of the commitment and the work that is involved. I encourage students to sign up for the “Southwestern Public Service Program” on TWEN for more information relating to public interest, along with many opportunities that are listed. Students can also visit our Legal Clinic throughout the year to view the volunteer board, obtain handouts and ask questions such as how to submit their PSP volunteer hours through Symplicity.

The following three programs were a success this past year and all will be continuing in 2011-2012: VITA Volunteers The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program prepares free federal and state tax returns for low-income taxpayers as well as for Southwestern students, faculty and staff. All VITA tax preparers are Southwestern students and the program is entirely student-run, spearheaded by the Tax Law Society. Last year, there were 26 volunteers from all class years. No prior knowledge of tax is required, but all volunteers must be certified by the IRS to prepare tax returns. Training materials are provided and several training sessions are offered to help all volunteers pass the IRS certification test. In 2011, the student volunteers prepared 189 federal returns and 198 state returns helping clients receive a total of $182,610 refunded to them – with the average refund amount of $1,171 per person. VITA also helped students receive education credits for paying tuition and assisted low-income taxpayers in obtaining the Earned Income Credit, which really makes a difference considering the average VITA client income was $16,040. VITA runs from January to April 15 and assists clients Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings. All participation with VITA qualifies for PSP hours. Students can add "Tax Law Society" on TWEN to get updates on upcoming events and sign up to volunteer.

Justice Bus® Spring Break Trip to Paso Robles During the 2011 Spring Break, 12 law students were selected to volunteer on an overnight trip coordinated by OneJustice to Paso Robles to work with California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA). The mission of Justice Bus® trips is to provide an opportunity for urban law students to travel to rural California to support rural legal services nonprofits and other community-based organizations by providing much-needed legal advice. The trip provides an opportunity for students to work together outside of the law school setting, gain skills while assisting underrepresented clients and help fill the justice gap. One law student volunteer shared: “I had a wonderful time with the Justice Bus. The experience was very educational and it was very rewarding being able to help others. The overnight trip was great because it gave me a chance to bond with other law students that I would not normally get a chance to bond with. Everybody was so friendly! I cannot say enough good things about the CRLA attorney Michael Bank. I’ve never met such a kind hearted attorney. He was not only devoted to helping his clients, but very much invested in teaching us the law. I have met very few people with his wealth of knowledge and his patience.” Another student expressed: “The Justice Bus was such a great, valuable experience. It was everything I'd hoped it would be and more. I loved meeting the clients and seeing what public service lawyering looks like in real life.” Plans are in the works for our third overnight trip during the 2012 Spring Break. Those interested should watch for announcements about the trip and the application due date. Small Claims Clinic A collaborative effort of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, Bet Tzedek Legal Services, the law firm of Greenberg Glusker, the Center for Civic Mediation and Southwestern, the popular, monthly Small Claims Court Workshop has expanded into a clinical setting to provide one-on-one assistance to participants. This past year, SCALE students were trained as volunteers with this new program and continue to participate each month at the clinic, answering questions and assisting people who have filed, are considering filing or who are defending small claims actions. The services are free of charge and the issues vary amongst the 25 to 40 attendees per evening who represent a wide range of ages from early 20’s to 70’s and are ethnically diverse. Our new SCALE I students have already completed training and began volunteering in August, which included a visit to Commissioner Robert Harrison’s Small Claims Courtroom in downtown Los Angeles. Commissioner Harrison shared with students, who observed the afternoon calendar, that he is seeing better evidence packets and believes the Small Claims Clinic is making a difference in the quality of case presentation.

SAVE THE DATE FOR OUR ANNUAL

LEGALOPEN CLINIC HOUSE Showcasing Southwestern’s Clinical Program, including the Children’s Rights, Immigration Law and Street Law clinics, at a special wine and hors d'oeuvres reception

Friday, March 16, 2012 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. Look for complete details in the new year!

Southwestern Law School 3050 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, California 90010-1106 www.swlaw.edu