Immigration Law Clinic

Students are responsible for individual immigration cases that range in complexity and urgency. All students are tasked with investigating their cases, maintaining contact with their clients, briefing their cases and potentially representing their clients in immigration court. Seminars are narrowly tailored to skills and law needed to work on clinic cases, with some conceptual analyses included later in the seminar to place the cases in the larger framework of the law. Clients come from diverse backgrounds and frequently have unusual factual scenarios that bring them to the doors of Legal Aid. Students are expected to work with the clients and understand what they want and what we can pursue for them through all available legal mechanisms.  The clinic focuses on complicated cases for humanitarian relief, removal defense and impact cases arising out of emerging areas of the law.

The clinic will meet as a group at LAJC’s office (1000 Preston Ave., Suite A) during the scheduled course time for seminar. Student meetings and supervision is TBD.

IMPORTANT: All clinic participants must attend an “Orientation to Law Clinics at LAJC” session at the start of the semester. This session will provide clinic participants with necessary information about working with LAJC and its client community. It is typically held on the Monday before classes start from 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m.

Students interested in this clinic must submit and application and rank the clinic in the clinic lottery within the timeline set by the Student Records Office. Students selected for the clinic through the clinic lottery process will be automatically enrolled prior to the regular course lottery.

The positions that the clinic takes on behalf of its clients are independent of the views of the University of Virginia or the School of Law.