The University of Miami School of Law has launched two new clinics—the Federal Appellate Clinic and the Tenants’ Rights Clinic—that will give students practical, hands-on legal experience while helping needy and underrepresented individuals in Miami.

Headed by Professor of Law Ricardo J. Bascuas, a former assistant federal public defender, the Federal Appellate Clinic is a one-semester, three-credit course that provides upper-level students with the opportunity to plan, research, and draft pending federal appeals for indigent criminal defendants referred by the Federal Public Defender for the Southern District of Florida.

“The Federal Appellate Clinic affords students an intensive opportunity to advance their written advocacy and client communication skills,” said Bascuas. “UM alumna Kathleen Williams, the federal public defender for this district, was instrumental in the clinic’s launch. She has continued to work closely with the group to ensure that the students have an experience that closely mirrors the work of the appellate attorneys in her office.”

Pairs of students are assigned to a case and required to produce a top-quality brief on strict deadline. The entire class discusses all of the clinics’ cases, debates strategies, and shares research and ideas—functioning, in effect, as a small, highly collaborative law firm. Students are also responsible for communicating with the clients both in person and through correspondence. Bascuas supervises each team in conjunction with the Federal Public Defender’s Office and guides the class through the briefing process.

The Tenants’ Rights Clinic is based at Legal Services of Greater Miami and headed by Professor Jeffrey Hearne. Designed to allow students to represent a client from the beginning of a case until its completion, the clinic primarily involves clients being evicted from public and subsidized housing, receiving Section 8 terminations, and/or having their affordable housing applications denied. Each student will be assigned several cases during the semester. Students will interview clients, investigate cases, research legal issues, negotiate with opposing parties, draft pleadings and discovery, and represent clients at mediation, administrative hearings, and in court.

“The Tenants’ Rights Clinic will not only teach students how to represent and advocate for a client, but will allow students to observe how the judicial system works for the disadvantaged in our community,” said Hearne. “Hopefully, the students will leave the clinic understanding the legal needs of low-income families and the critical role attorneys can play to resolve these problems. With the help of clinic students, Legal Services of Greater Miami, Inc. will increase the number of families it provides with legal representation—which, in the end, means that more families will keep a roof over their head.”

Students involved in this clinic will be required to hold office hours at Legal Services of Greater Miami for 12 hours each week.

Miami Law’s distinctive and award-winning clinics are exceptional training grounds for students. Each year law students and faculty members participate in efforts to help people from a wide range of areas: individuals threatened with eviction, youth aging out of foster care, refugees seeking asylum, and low-income and elderly seeking help with will preparation.