Access to Justice Clinic - Criminal Appellate Division

Students work in teams of two and will analyze a trial court decision, identify appellate issues, draft an appellate brief, and/or evaluate cases for potential post-conviction relief. Students will also engage in client interviewing, counseling, and research. Students in this Clinic enjoy the same close supervision and mentorship that is a hallmark of the GW Clinics as well as the certification to practice as student attorneys. The time commitment and scope of lawyering work involved in this Clinic, however, are more limited than those in our traditional 4-6 credit clinics. 

For more information, please login to the Portal. Complete application instructions are available on the Clinics Portal page approximately one month prior to the registration period.

Students will be selected based on their potential to provide high quality, client-centered legal services to our client population. Faculty will consider students’ interest in and commitment to the practice of criminal law, appellate practice, access to justice, advocacy on behalf of those who have been marginalized, and/or litigation generally. Students who have not yet been able to explore these areas should not be deterred from applying but should explain in their applications their interest in and enthusiasm about working on these issues.

Interested students must fill out the Uniform Clinic Application from the Law School's student portal website under "Clinics," where a complete set of application instructions are posted at least a few weeks prior to registration. Students may contact Professor Carter to discuss the Clinic generally or to ask specific questions. Permission of the instructor is required prior to registration. Students may not enroll in this course and in Law 6668 (Field Placement) unless they have the written permission of the Clinic Director and the Assistant Dean of Field Placement.

In the seminar, students focus on case evaluation, appellate strategy, and critical thinking. Classroom exercises will prepare students for the legal work they will engage in. Students also learn the substantive law they need to engage in their lawyering work, including legal standards relevant in appellate cases. Students will have an opportunity to practice oral advocacy in the classroom setting. Finally, in seminar, students consider access to justice and how to reform our legal system to address bias, discrimination, and injustice. The seminar is taught collaboratively with faculty who direct other divisions of the Access to Justice Clinic. Students also are engaged in lawyering work.

Students will be appointed to represent clients by the D.C. Court of Appeals. Students will review the trial record for each case, identify potential appellate issues, and file written briefs addressing those issues. Students will also evaluate each case for potential postconviction issues, including ineffective assistance of counsel, and will potentially draft post-conviction motions. Students will counsel their clients on potential issues.

Students leave this intensive clinical experience with insight into the court system, the role of a lawyer in access to justice, and the ways in which our system is justice and unjust. They also leave having engaged in lawyering work for litigants under the close supervision of experienced clinical faculty who seek to support students in their professional development, their lawyering skills, and their professional identity formation – all of which will serve students in their marketability and their job performance.

This Clinic is intended to provide a clinical experience to students who may not have the ability to devote more credits or time to lawyering work. At the same time, students will be engaged in the practice of law, which can be unpredictable and demanding. Students will be expected to devote an average of 12 hours per week to their Clinic work. The work will ebb and flow during the semester, requiring substantially more work when working under a particular deadline and less work between deadlines. We ask that students be prepared to be as flexible as possible and that they understand that litigation schedules are often driven by judges and clients rather than by lawyers.

Unfortunately, the Access to Justice Clinic - Criminal Appellate Division cannot take cases from the public.  The Clinic currently receives all cases from the Maryland Office of the Public Defender.