Fall, Spring, or Summer semester: 3 credits
The
Criminal Appeals Legal Clinic provides you with the opportunity to
represent clients convicted of felony offenses in front of the Illinois
Appellate Court. Working under the supervision of attorneys from the
Office of the State Appellate Defender, you will review the record from
trial; confer with the client; research the law to provide support for
their theories; and draft and file a brief at the end of the semester.
The classroom component of the clinic includes lectures on appellate
procedure and roundtable discussions on students' progress throughout
the semester. While the clinic specializes in appellate law, it also
provides insight into trial practice. You will review and analyze the
procedures, motions and evidentiary rulings that took place in the trial
court. The clinic's focus on research and writing is ideal for students
seeking clerkships or wanting to develop persuasive writing skills. As a
product of participation, students leave with a unique writing sample
to submit to potential employers: an actual brief filed in a court of
appeals.
The Criminal Appeals Clinic is taught in a rotation by attorneys from the Office of the State Appellate Defender.
The Advanced Criminal Appeals Clinic is an
additional semester of Criminal Appeals Clinic course work for students
who have already completed one semester of the clinic. This clinic
course will allow students to continue representing their appellate
clients through the reply brief process.