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#Clinical and Pro Bono Programs

Our Mission

The mission of the Clinical and Pro Bono Programs at Harvard Law School is to provide diverse and innovative clinical and pro bono opportunities for students to practice law and develop skills through individualized supervision, mentoring, and modeling; advance access to justice locally and globally by working on real world cases/projects; and inspire students to develop a lifelong commitment to pro bono service.

Student Life in the Clinical and Pro Bono Programs

figure" data-cycle-easing="easeInOutQuint" data-cycle-speed="700" data-cycle-auto-height="16:9" data-cycle-swipe="true" > Students of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau spent time in the woods around Camp Burgess for a day of bonding and reflection. They engaged in discussions of what it means to be a student-run organization and the goals for the upcoming year. The group then tackled a high-ropes challenge course. Read Caption Harvard Legal Aid Bureau Clinical Instructor Lee Goldstein (left) and Kellie MacDonald J.D. ’15 (right). Kellie settled a case for a client whose employer had illegally withheld her overtime pay for ten years. Read Caption Students in the 2015 January Supreme Court Litigation Clinic (L-R): Patrick Looby, May Davis, Tsuki Hoshijima, Rachel Homer, Michael Qin, Sean Mirski, Maya Brodziak, Alex Shank, David Kirk, and Tara Norris, spent their winter term working around the clock to research, write and edit the entire respondents’ brief in City of Los Angeles v. Patel. Read Caption Credit: Jessica Scranton

As part of the Education Law Clinic, David Li ’15 (second from left) and Spencer Churchill ’15 (right) lobbied successfully on Beacon Hill last spring for the Safe and Supportive Schools Act. Also pictured: Sen. Sal DiDomenico and Rep. Ruth Balser, the Act’s lead sponsors. Read Caption In Geneva, in advance of the UN Committee Against Torture’s formal review of the United States, Morgan Davis, J.D. ’15, spoke to the U.S. delegation, on behalf of Advocates for U.S. Torture Prosecutions, a civil society group that includes the International Human Rights Clinic. Read Caption Hon. John C. Cratsley (Ret.), Lecturer on Law and Director of the Judicial Process in Trial Courts Clinic is pictured with Harvard Law School LL.M. alumns, all of whom are now judges in Korea and have been his students in the clinic and related course. In the Photo L-R (back row) Tai Heon Ha, LL.M. ’12; Kim Chang Mo LL.M. ’11; Kim Min Soo, LL.M. ’14; Sung Jun Park, LL.M. ’11; and Sang-Jin Oh, LL.M. ’09, and in front row (left to right), Sung Chul Min LL.M. ’08; Hon. John C. Cratsley (Ret.); and Hyun Nak Hee LL.M. ’13. Also present but missed the photo was Inyoung Cho LL.M. ’09. Read Caption Credit: Kris Snibbe

L-R: Legal Veterans Clinic students, Chris Melendez J.D. '15 and Brad Hinshelwood J.D. '14, meet together inside the Wasserstein Hall's Caspersen Student Center before arguing Ausmer v. Shinseki, a case for veterans at the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. Read Caption Credit: Mark Ostow

Training ethical, zealous advocates Criminal Justice Institute Deputy (CJI) Director Dehlia Umunna (right) with Amanda Savage ’15, Asmara Carbado ’15 and Cass Luskin ’15 at the Roxbury District Court. The students represented clients through the CJI Criminal defense clinic, handling all aspects of their cases. Read Caption Harvard Law alumn Andrew Roach J.D. ’13 (left) and Clinical Professor of Law Daniel Nagin met with a veteran at HLS's Veterans Legal Clinic to discuss the status of a case on appeal. The clinic’s value is manifold, Nagin said, noting, “It’s a privilege to be able to advocate for someone who’s sacrificed for the nation.” Read Caption Food Law and Policy Clinic hosted a workshop with Navajo Nation, developing strategies to change laws and policies on the federal, tribal, state and local level to improve the food system. Read Caption Jiayun Ho LL.M. ’15 and Seanan Fong HDS ’16, spent two months conducting “The Sudbury Listening Project.” A tense political climate in the Town of Sudbury, Mass. led the Sudbury Clergy Association to contract with the Harvard Negotiation and Mediation Clinical Program to assist with increasingly hostile exchanges between and among stakeholders in a variety of settings. Read Caption Spring Break 2015: Harvard Law School students traveled to Clarksdale, Mississippi to capture video footage, gather resources, and draft informative online materials in order to create a digital advocacy strategy to promote education and awareness around heirs’ property issues in the Mississippi Delta. Read Caption Spring Break 2015: A group of students traveled to Tennessee to work with Equal Justice Under Law (EJUL). Students investigated debtors’ prisons, gathered information about constitutional civil rights violations, observed municipal court hearings, comprehensively recorded their observations, and interviewed indigent defendants and families. Read Caption Spring Break 2015: Harvard Law School students received an overview of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area by Dr. Roland Herts, director of Delta State’s Delta Center for Culture and Learning. The center’s Lee Aylward led a tour of the area. Read Caption Spring Break 2015: A small group of three students spent a week with the ProBar South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project in Harlingen, Texas. They were working with the office that assists adults in the Port Isabel Detention Center who are seeking asylum. Read Caption Emmett Environmental Law and Policy Clinic students visited a dam in Lowell, Massachusetts, the subject of oral arguments they attended in the case of United States Department of the Interior v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission before the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Read Caption L-R: Joshua Lee J.D.'15, Jaimie McFarlin J.D. '15, Professor Emeritus Paul C. Weiler LL.M. ’65, Juan Arguello J.D. '15, Javier Oliver J.D. '15, and Lecturer on Law and Sports Law Clinic Director, Peter Carfagna pictured at the 2015 Committee on Sports and Entertainment Law’s Symposium. Students were honored with the Weiler Awards, recognizing excellence in legal writing in sports and entertainment as well as work with the Sports Law Clinic. Read Caption Credit: Lorin Granger

The Gary Bellow Public Service Award was created in 2001 to recognize excellence in public interest work at HLS and to honor Professor Bellow. The Awards are given annually by the student body of Harvard Law School to a student and alumnus/a whose commitment to social justice makes us proud to be a part of the HLS community.

Donna Harati, Student Winner 2015

Laura Maslow-Armand, Alumni Winner 2015. Read Caption Credit: Lorin Granger

Chad Baker, J.D. ’15, Winner of the Kaufman Pro Bono Service Award. Baker contributed over 2000 pro bono hours working with the Tenant Advocacy Project, the Prison Legal Assistance Project, and the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau. He was honored for demonstrating an extraordinary commitment to improving and delivering high quality volunteer legal services to disadvantaged communities. Read Caption Credit: Lorin Granger

Seth Packrone, J.D. ’15, Winner of the Exemplary Clinical Student Award. Packrone worked with the Child Advocacy Clinic, Criminal Justice Institute, Education Law Clinic, and Mississippi Delta Project. He was honored for his combination of hard work, integrity and compassion. Read Caption Credit: Lorin Granger

Seth Hoedl, J.D. ’15, Winner of the Exemplary Clinical Student Award. Hoedl was a student in the Emmett Environmental Law and Policy Clinic and was honored for his exceptional skills and experience in tackling significant environmental problems. Read Caption Zoe Brennan-Krohn, J.D. ’15, Winner of the Law Student Ethics Award from the Association of Corporate Counsel, Northeast Chapter. Read Caption L-R: Katherine Soltis, J.D. ’15; Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, Hon. Ralph D. Gants; and Jocelyn Keider, J.D. ’15. The Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs offered its heartfelt congratulations to the 15 Harvard Law students honored for their commitment to pro bono work at the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s 2014 Adams Pro Bono Publico Award Ceremony. Read Caption During winter term, students traveled to Washington D.C. and Tanzania to work with New Markets Lab in helping local entities navigate the regulatory challenges that impact business growth, particularly in the agricultural sector. Read Caption Front Row (L-R): Rachel Viscomi ‘01, Assistant Director of the Harvard Negotiation and Mediation Clinical Program; Prill Ellis, HMP Clinical Supervisor; Maureen (Mo) Griffin, HMP Program Manager Back Row (L-R): Sam Cortina ’15; Michael Moffit ‘94, Dean, University of Oregon School of Law; Nancy Welsh ’82, Professor of Law, Dickinson School of Law at Penn State; Erin Archerd ’08, Langdon Fellow in Dispute Resolution, Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University; Rishi Batra HLS ‘08, Assistant Professor of Law, Texas Tech University School of Law; John Miller, ‘15. Read Caption