7919. Clinic: United States' Attorney's

Students assist in investigating and litigating civil rights and other matters in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut. The year-long clinic will include six weeks of classroom seminars in the fall followed by field assignment in both semesters. In the spring, a weekly class meeting, at which we discuss cases, takes the place of the seminar. Students will receive instruction on various topics related to the USAO’s work, such as: official misconduct; educational access; human trafficking; hate crimes; language access; rights of institutionalized persons; rights of service members and veterans; voting rights; and federal investigation techniques and procedure. Field work is performed under supervision of Assistant United States Attorneys, investigators, and paralegals, and consists of investigation, evidence gathering, pleading drafting, hearing preparation, attendance at court hearings, legal research, litigation strategy, and settlement negotiations in federal cases, including civil rights matters as well as other criminal and civil cases. Students are strongly encouraged to enroll for the full year; single semester enrollment by instructor permission. 3 graded credits each semester. To perform fieldwork, all students must pass a background check. Because that process can take several weeks, students must contact the instructors upon enrolling to initiate their background check or risk being unable to fulfill course requirements. Field work is performed at one of the three USAO offices in Connecticut: New Haven, Hartford, and/or Bridgeport. Office availability depends on various factors and students’ first-choice selection cannot be guaranteed. At least two trips to New Haven are required to obtain an identification badge.