Information for Students

Civil Practice/Elderly Clinic / LAW 673

Course Instructors: Clinical Professor, Rebecca O’Neill ; Clinical Associate Professor, John Erbes; Staff Attorney Heidi Ramos

Students who have completed 54 hours of law credit and Evidence and Civil procedure are eligible to enroll in this Clinic. These prerequisites allow students to obtain an Illinois Student Practice License so that they can represent clients and appear in court under the supervision of clinic attorneys. See the School of Law Rules relating to Clinics on the Clinic/Public Services web page for more details about enrollment in clinical courses.
 

Students who enroll in the Civil procedure/Elderly Clinic work with an experienced clinic attorney and provide civil legal services to senior citizens from a 13 county area in Southern Illinois. Each student is assigned to a supervisory attorney and is responsible for several cases.
 

Students represent clients from the intake interview through the completion of their case, whenever possible. Students improve or enhance the following legal skills through this clinical experience:

. Factual Investigation
. Client Interviewing and Counseling
. Legal Research and Writing
. Developing and Implementing Legal Theories
. Drafting and Reviewing Legal Documents
. Filing Papers and Working with the Circuit Clerks
. Representing Clients in Court
. Negotiating with Opposing Counsel
. Working with Other Attorneys and Staff in a Law Office Setting
. File Management and Case Management
 

In addition to representing clients, students have regular class meetings to learn the substantive legal areas most commonly encountered with older clients. These areas include:

. Drafting Simple Wills /Drafting Powers of Attorney for Health Care and Property /Representing Clients in Guardianship Proceedings

. A Variety of Other Civil Legal areas, such as:

. divorce /grandparent visitation /consumer fraud /elder abuse and neglect /nursing home rights violations /creditor problems /contract problems