They can see the impact of the law on women's economic situation, safety, and relationship with their children. The clinic has nine students, six of whom, working in teams, have full responsibility for representing clients in the in- house clinic, and three of whom, also working in teams, have an externship placement, assisting attorneys appointed by the District of Columbia Superior Court to represent parents, children, or other parties in child neglect cases. Students in both the in-house and externship components of the clinic are certified to practice in the District of Columbia courts and work under the close supervision of faculty supervisors. The cases are often vigorously contested and require the use of many different skills. Extensive client contact, often involving complex counseling issues, and vigorous fact investigation are common.
Negotiation occurs in a variety of contexts.
Students also have frequent opportunities for legal writing, including client opinion letters, complaints, motions and legal memoranda. Court appearances and administrative hearings involve both the presentation of evidence through witnesses and exhibits and legal arguments and usually entail both written and oral advocacy. Each team's caseload varies depending on the complexity and demands of the cases. The clinic provides an opportunity to handle a variety of matters, while also permitting students, as they pick up cases, to focus on areas of particular interest to them. In addition to regular meetings with their supervisor, clinic students meet weekly in a clinic seminar on the theory and practice of advocacy, based largely around simulations, and in case rounds to learn and strategize about each others' cases, as well as compare various aspects of their experiences.