Children's Rights Clinic

Q: What types of cases will students work on in the Clinic?
A: Students in the Children's Rights Clinic represent youth in school discipline proceedings, or youth with special needs in special education proceedings where discipline or behavior is an issue, or work with community groups to advocate for better and more equitable educational opportunities for youth.

Q: What do students do in the Children's Rights Clinic?
A: Students working on school discipline cases interview and counsel clients, investigate and develop facts, interview witnesses, conduct legal research, create a case plan, negotiate with school personnel, and, if necessary, represent clients at school discipline hearings. These hearings provide the opportunity for clinic students to submit oral and written argument, examine witnesses, and present evidence before the school board. If appropriate, clinic students may have the opportunity to represent students on appeal before the county board of education.

Students working on special education cases interview and counsel clients, investigate and develop facts, work with mental health professionals and experts, conduct legal research, create a case plan, and represent clients at individualized education program team meetings. If necessary, students may represent clients at mediation or due process hearings.

Q: What is the community outreach component?
A: Clinic students will give presentations on school discipline or special education related issues to parent community groups. Students will create the presentations and materials and offer attendees an opportunity to ask questions about their particular education related issue.

Q: How are cases referred to the Clinic?
A: Cases are referred to the Children's Rights Clinic from the Dependency Court, the Delinquency Court, non-profit organizations and local parent organizations. Individuals may call the Children's Rights Clinic Intake Line at (213) 738-6621 for a case intake screening.

Q: What are the eligibility requirements?
A: To be eligible for the Clinic, students must be in good academic standing. Full time students must have completed their first year of study and part-time students must have completed their second year of study. The only pre/co-requisite for the clinic is Evidence. Other recommended courses are Legal Profession, Children and the Law, Education Law, Special Education Law Seminar, Family Law, Interviewing, Counseling and Negotiation, and Trial Advocacy.

Q: How do students apply for the Clinic?
A: Interested students must submit a Children's Rights Clinic application available on the portal at MySWLAW. Students are selected based on their application with priority given to students in their final year of law school and to those who have not had prior in-house clinic experience. Fluency in a relevant language other than English is preferred, but not required. Selection will not be based on academic rank.

Q: Is a clinical experience beneficial even if I don't plan on practicing in an area relating to children?
A: Yes, students learn the essentials of case planning, problem solving, strategic thinking, professionalism, client relations, and other skills associated with the practice of law.

Q: How many units will I receive and how is the clinical experience graded?
A: The Children's Rights Clinic is a semester course. It is five units and graded; 20% of the grade will be based on participation in the classroom and 50% of the grade will be based on performance on casework and lawyering skills, 15% on professional habits and 15% on performance on the policy project.

Students working on school discipline cases will interview and counsel clients, investigate and develop facts, interview witnesses, conduct legal research, create a case plan, negotiate with school personnel, and, if necessary, represent clients at school discipline hearings. These hearings provide the opportunity for clinic students to submit oral and written argument, examine witnesses, and present evidence before the school board. If appropriate, clinic students may have the opportunity to represent students on appeal before the county board of education.

Working in teams of two, clinic students assigned to school discipline cases interview children, their parents or guardians, their teachers, social workers, and any other person with information about the child to prepare for the discipline proceeding. Clinic students review the child's school file and engage in informal discovery to gather all of the relevant facts. In many cases, students have the opportunity to negotiate with school district personnel in an attempt to informally resolve the matter. If these efforts are not successful, students prepare for an administrative hearing before a panel of school board members, which includes trial preparation and writing a trial brief. At the hearing, students present evidence, examine and cross-examine witnesses, and give an opening and closing statement. If the hearing does not provide a satisfactory result, students may appeal the case to the Los Angeles County Board of Education. In preparing for the hearing before the Board of Education, students review the earlier transcripts, draft an appeal brief, and prepare for and ultimately engage in oral argument.

Students working on special education cases will interview and counsel clients, investigate and develop facts, work with mental health professionals and experts, conduct legal research, create a case plan, and represent clients at individualized education program team meetings. If necessary, students may represent clients at mediation or due process hearings.

Students working on special education cases interview children, their parents, teachers, social workers, and any other person with information about the child in preparation for the Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting. Clinic students review the child's school file and engage in informal discovery to gather all of the relevant facts. Students then have the opportunity to advocate and negotiate on the child's behalf at the IEP meeting. If that process does not adequately satisfy the child's needs, students draft and file complaints with either the California Department of Education or the Office of Administrative Hearings. If the case moves forward to due process (e.g. by filing a complaint with the Office of Administrative Hearings), students participate in a mediation conference with the school district. If a resolution is not achieved, students prepare for trial, interview expert witnesses, and draft and file motions and a trial brief. At the hearing, students present evidence, examine witnesses, cross-examine witnesses, and give an opening and closing statement. If the hearing is unsuccessful, students may appeal the case to the United States District Court for the Central District of California.