Once a year, with the stroke of a pen, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Tennessee authorizes a small group of UT College of Law students—all in their third year—to practice law in the world of real litigants, real facts, real cases, and real outcomes before real courts.
In short, they become certified legal staff for the longest continually operating legal clinic in the U.S., the Charles H. Miller Legal Clinic of the University of Tenessee.
The clinic opened its doors to indigent clients in 1947, representing over the years thousands of persons in civil and criminal cases heard in municipal, state and federal courtrooms.
"Throughout law school, you hear about passionate and zealous representation on behalf of your client," says law school graduate Robert Kurtz. "The faculty in the legal clinic embody those characteristics. For students, practicing law in the clinis is the first step towards learning how to become that kind of an advocate."
Under faculty supervision, students learn through direct experience, by all intents and purposes, in an actual law firm. They learn by doing—by interviewing witnesses, sorting facts, checking precedent, collaborating with peers, negotiating, and advocating, whether the case involves an eviction notice, lost benefits, a street crime, or a civil suit.
Fundamentally, the UT Legal Clinic, as well as the mediation clinic and other experimental programs offered within the college, are the most eloquent expression of the law school's purpose.
"Our main tasks—the development of skills, the nurture of intellect, the molding of character—have never changed," says Interim Dean John L. Sobieski. "The College of Law teaches its students to think, write, and speak like lawyers."
For more information about the Clinical Programs and the UT College of Law, visit the links below:
