Federal Defender Clinic
LW.10783 / LW.10767
Professor Marne Lenox
Professor Allegra Glashausser
Open to 2L and 3L students
Maximum of 12 students
Year-long course
14 credits*
Pre-/co-requisites: Criminal Procedure and either Evidence or a trial advocacy course**
Course Description
Fieldwork
Clinic fieldwork encompasses defending clients who have been accused of federal felony and petty offenses. For petty offenses, clinic students, under close faculty supervision, assume the primary duties of representation in the Eastern District of New York. This includes interviewing, advising, and counseling clients, researching and investigating allegations, and developing defenses and mitigation in preparation for negotiations with student prosecutors.
Clinic students also work on federal felony cases under the direct supervision of attorneys at the Federal Defenders of New York in both the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.
Seminar
The early weeks of the fall semester are devoted to the ethics of criminal defense and developing interview skills and negotiation techniques, and preparing to represent clients accused of petty offense violations. Throughout the year, students engage in a variety of simulations, such as mock client interviews, cross-examination, impeachment, bail hearings, opening statements, and closing arguments. Expert guest speakers present on a variety of topics, ranging from professional responsibility to legal writing, immigration, mitigation, and preserving issues for appeals. We also reserve time in seminar to discuss students’ petty offense cases and felony fieldwork.
Qualifications for Applicants
Students must have taken, or be able to take concurrently with the clinic, Criminal Procedure and either Evidence or a trial advocacy or litigation course.
Particular Scheduling Requirements
In addition to the evening seminar hours, FDC students must attend six petty offense intake days each semester. Accordingly, students will need to be available every Tuesday between 9 AM and 1:30 PM and may not schedule other classes at that time.
Application Procedure
Students interested in applying for the clinic should submit the standard application, resume, and transcript online through CAMS. Please also sign up for a 10-minute interview with the professors on CAMS.
* 14 credits include 3 clinical credits and 4 academic seminar credits each semester.
** If students have not taken any of these courses, they are expected to take them concurrently with the clinic.