Clinical Infopac

Clinical programs

(Updated February 6, 2026)

Introduction

The clinical programs at UMass Law help students transform their learning of the law into practice while also providing opportunities for students to improve the lives of those in our neighboring communities.

The Law School faculty believes it is important that students acquire the skills and values necessary for satisfying careers. The faculty also wants to ensure that the members of the neighboring community who are unable to afford private attorneys have access to legal assistance. Thus, the faculty has adopted a “practical skills” requirement, which mandates that students take at least six credits of skills courses. Three of the six practice credits must be satisfied through a clinic or field placement course, thus ensuring that all students have a real professional practice experience.

For further information on the Clinical Programs, please contact Professor Margaret Drew, Interim Director of Clinical Programs or Crystal Desirey, Clinical Programs Coordinator, at 508-985-1180.

In law clinics, students directly represent clients, with the supervision of a licensed attorney staff member, who would not otherwise have legal representation. Through these experiences, students enhance their legal skills while providing important services. Our curriculum emphasizes the importance of clinical courses as a core part of the law school curriculum in accordance with the skills and values statement written by a Committee of the American Bar Association. That statement listed the skills and values that all law students need to be exposed to while in law school, including the following:

Skills

1. Solving a problem or accomplishing an objective;
2. Analyzing and applying legal rules and principles;
3. Identifying legal issues and researching them thoroughly and efficiently;
4. Participating in factual investigations;
5. Communicating effectively, whether orally or in writing;
6. Counseling clients;
7. Negotiating in either a dispute-resolution or transactional context;
8. Employing or advising a client about the option of litigation and alternative dispute resolution;
9. Practicing effectively, familiarizing themselves with the skills and concepts required for efficient management; and
10. Representing a client consistently with applicable ethical standards.

Values

1. Providing competent, professional, and ethical representation to one’s clients; 
2. Promoting justice, fairness, and morality in society;
3. Contributing to the improvement of the legal profession;
4. Seeking constantly to improve one’s skills, expertise, and
5. Making professional judgments through study, reflection, and discussion.

These skills and values are covered in our clinical courses. Students will be addressing a variety of them in each clinical course although not all of the listed skills and values will be addressed in each course.

The Law School currently offers seven clinical opportunities: Immigration Law Clinic, Community Development Clinic, Mashpee Wampanoag Legal Services Clinic, Criminal Prosecution Clinic, Human Rights at Home Clinic, Housing and Eviction Defense Clinic, and the State Attorney General Clinic. Students will find themselves better prepared for the practice of law after taking a clinic.

In-house clinic opportunities:

Community Development Clinic (Law 640) 

• 3 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to 8
• Graded
• Offered Fall and Spring semesters
• Prerequisites or corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525) and Business Organization (Law 585); completion of 30 credit hours
• Permission of instructor required.

Students, supervised by a law school professor, spend one semester representing small businesses and non-profit organizations in the South Coast area of Massachusetts. Work includes drafting corporate documents, preparing state and federal filings, conducting legal audits, researching legal issues, and reviewing contracts. Students may also have the opportunity to research new developments in the law and make presentations to the board of directors and employees of nonprofit organizations. Students will also study the law of, and assist clients engaging in, small for-profit business activity. Clinic students attend a weekly two-hour seminar that will provide training in the relevant legal topics, as well as in practical legal skills such as legal drafting and public speaking skills. Students will also reflect on and consider ethical and other issues arising in practice. Students will average 10 hours weekly on their clinical work.

Advanced Community Development Clinic (Law 692)

• 3 credits (one semester)
• enrollment is by invitation only
• Graded
• Offered Fall and Spring semesters
• Prerequisite: Community Development Clinic (Law 640)

Students who have completed the Community Development Clinic (Law 640) may be invited to participate in the Advanced Community Development Clinic in a subsequent semester. Advanced Clinic students will continue to work with clients, expanding their knowledge of clinic-specific substantive law as they further develop their lawyering skills. Advanced Clinic students may also assist with the first-semester course, mentor students, participate in programs for the public, and engage in a writing project.

Immigration Law Clinic (Law 606)

• 4-6 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to 8
• Graded
• Offered Fall and/or Spring semesters
• Prerequisites or corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525); and completion of 30 credit hours.
• Permission of instructor required.

In this semester-long, 4-6 credit clinic, students, in both class and individual specialized supervision, learn concrete lawyering skills while providing immigration legal services to those who are unable to afford legal assistance. Case types vary but include: bond hearings and deportation defense; visas for juveniles; representation of victims of violence at home, work, or elsewhere; asylum; and naturalization. Classes offer both substantive and practical training in case preparation -- interviewing, counseling, motion practice, court filings – along with several other skills necessary for competent, ethical practice. The 12- 20 hours per week commitment includes supervision, class time, assignments, and other community engagement activities.

Advanced Immigration Law Clinic (Law 667)

• 3 credits (one semester)
• enrollment is by invitation only
• Graded
• Offered Fall and/or Spring semesters
• Immigration Law Clinic (Law 606)

Students who have completed a semester in the Immigration Law Clinic (ILC) (Law 606) may be invited to participate in an Advanced Clinic. Advanced ILC students will mentor first time ILC students and will expand their own knowledge of general and clinic-specific substantive and procedural law as they build upon the lawyering skills they developed in their previous clinic year. Advanced ILC students will participate in outreach activities to educate the public about immigration law.

Human Rights at Home Clinic (Law 780) 

• 3, 4, 5, or 6 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to 8
• Graded
• Offered Fall and/or Spring semesters
• Prerequisites or corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525) or having passed the MPRE with a minimum score of 85, completion of 30 credit hours
• Permission of instructor required. Students may repeat this experience at the invitation of the instructor.

Law students, supervised by a law school professor, spend one semester serving the needs of local residents and beyond. Clinic work will be varied, permitting the flexibility to meet a range of community, state and national concerns. Examples of possible projects are serving domestic violence survivors, those who are incarcerated, war veterans, and others whose fundamental needs are unmet. In addition, students may address local, state or national research and policy needs as they arise. Each semester’s projects are announced at the beginning of registration. Students attend a weekly seminar and consult with peers regarding their clinic work through case rounds. Students may elect to take the clinic for 3-6 credits, committing 10, 13.5, 16.5, or 20 hours per week to the clinic work, depending upon the number of credits to be awarded.

Off-Site Clinic Opportunities

Criminal Prosecution Clinic (Law 703)

• 3 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to third year  students
• Graded; Offered Fall and/or Spring semester
• Prerequisites: Criminal Procedure (Law 521)
• Corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525); Evidence (Law 576) or Trial Practice (Law 620
• Permission of instructor required.

The Criminal Prosecution Clinic is housed with the Bristol County District Attorney’s office located in various courts in Bristol County. Clinic students, supervised by a senior District Attorney, spend one semester engaged in the legal work of a prosecutor gaining courtroom, discovery, legal writing, and litigation strategy experience. Students will participate in weekly 2- hour seminars where they will focus on a variety of topics in criminal law and procedure, evidence, ethics, and practice skills. In addition to the two-hour seminar held at the law school, students average 10 hours weekly on their case work. Each applicant must undergo a background check, including a criminal records check. A criminal record is not necessarily a bar to participation in the clinic. Each situation will be judged on its own merits. If you have any concerns, please speak with Professor Dunlap.

Housing and Eviction Defense Clinic (Law 730)

• 3 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to 4
• Graded
• Offered Fall and Spring semesters
• Prerequisite: completion of 30 credit hours
• Prerequisite or Corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525) or have passed the MPRE with a minimum score of 85.

The Housing and Eviction Defense Clinic is housed in South Coast County Legal Services (SCCLS) office. Clinic students will represent indigent clients who are facing eviction or have other tenant legal concerns. In addition to the two-hour seminar held at the law school, students will work directly with clients and supervising attorneys and typically will appear in court. Bristol County Housing Court is in session on Thursdays and Fridays and students with availability on those days will be preferred. 

Mashpee Wampanoag Legal Services Clinic (Law 601)

• 3 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to 4
• Graded
• Offered Fall and Spring semesters
• Prerequisites or corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525); Evidence (Law 576) OR Trial Practice (Law 620); completion of 30 credit hours.

The Mashpee Wampanoag Legal Services Clinic is housed in the Hyannis office of South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Inc. Clinic clients include low-income litigants in the Tribal Court, located in Mashpee, Massachusetts, as well as tribal members seeking legal assistance with various other types of civil legal issues, including family law, landlord-tenant law, and government benefits law. Students attend weekly 2-hour seminars held at the law school and represent clients under the supervision of an experienced legal services attorney. Clinic students spend an average of 10 hours weekly on their clinical work. Student reflection on their direct representation work, including ethical concerns, is part of the clinical experience.

State Attorney General Clinic (Law 731)

• 5 credits (one semester)
• enrollment limited to 10
• Graded
• Offered Fall and Spring semesters
• Prerequisite: completion of 30 credit hours
• Prerequisite or Corequisites: Professional Responsibility (Law 525); Evidence (Law 576), and be in Good Academic Standing.

UMass Law students may apply to the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office to work onsite under the supervision of an Assistant Attorney General. Students will state a preferred field such as tax, consumer protection, litigation, and more, and are matched with available attorneys. In this role, students will research legal issues, write memoranda, and conduct legal work appropriate to their placement. The accompanying seminar will be held in person at the law school. Conflict and background checks are required. Those who have had interactions with the legal system should not be discouraged from applying.

Participation in any of these clinical opportunities requires submission of an application form to the LEC for approval of the Professor. An additional clinic-specific questionnaire is also required for the following Clinics: Community Development, Human Rights at Home, Immigration Law, Criminal Prosecution, Housing and Eviction Defense, and the State Attorney General’s Clinics. Please see the Clinical Programs Coordinator, Crystal Desirey, for these questionnaires. Students are allowed to enroll in one clinic or one field placement per semester.