Last month, as part of BC Law’s Immigration Clinic, my clinic partner and I advocated for our client’s release from detention during a bond hearing in front of an immigration judge, and were denied. Given his circumstances of indefinite long-term incarceration and mental illness, this denial was heartbreaking and unjust in more ways than one. I dreaded making the call to my client to discuss the outcome of the hearing and our next steps. I expected to hear intense sadness and frustration, and I certainly would not have blamed him if he took part of that out on me. But instead – though he was undeniably sad – he told me that my argument was perfect and exactly what he would have wanted to say if he were able to speak during the hearing. He expressed his gratitude for all our hard work and representation, despite the outcome. Of all the responses I imagined, this perhaps shocked me the most.
Continue readingfamily law
Law School in Action: Family Justice Clinic
Boston College Law School gives its students a wide range of classes to take that are taught by some of the best scholars in the field. Yet, while learning about the law in a classroom is crucial to becoming a successful attorney, nothing prepares you for day-to-day practice more than getting hands-on experience before graduating. That’s where BC Law’s clinics come in.
Law students in their second and third years of study can apply for coveted spots in any of the school’s fifteen clinics. No matter what someone’s legal interest is, there’s a clinic for them! To help students better understand the opportunities available to them, the BC Law Impact Blog is highlighting each of these clinics this semester. Here is our interview with the director of the Family Justice Clinic (and BC Law alum) Claire Donohue, who also serves as the director of the school’s social service advocacy program.
Tell us about your clinic!
In the Family Justice Clinic, students advise and represent low-income clients in civil and administrative matters related to family law and child welfare. This means students are in probate and family courts to litigate traditional family law matters: divorce, custody, alimony, and child support. But, we also represent families who have been accused of abuse or neglect and are subject to surveillance and regulation by the state. We even represent kin who have been denied the opportunity to provide kinship foster placements to their grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, etc.
Our students are court-certified as Student Attorneys and handle all phases of their clients’ cases, from client interviewing and case planning to fact investigation, discovery, client counseling, negotiation, and courtroom advocacy. We also work closely with masters of social work students to provide responsive, holistic representation to our clients.
Continue readingFive Christmas Songs as Law School Classes
While it may be finals season, it is also the holiday season. And what better way to spread some holiday cheer (and fight some finals fear) than with Christmas songs as law school classes.
Torts: “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer”
A classic Christmas tort. Wonder how the reindeer is going to pay for those compensatory damages.
Family Law: “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”
Mommy may need a divorce lawyer pretty soon. Hopefully her prenup didn’t have an enforceable infidelity clause.
Contracts: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”
He’s making his offers and he’s checking them twice. If you’re nice, you’re getting a gift – a promise with consideration?
Property: “12 Days of Christmas”
Three french hens, two turtle doves, the property interests are growing by the day!
Criminal Law: “Baby It’s Cold Outside”
Once described as “an ode to statutory rape,” controversy around this carol has prompted a more consensual rewrite by John Legend and Kelly Clarkson.
Sangeeta Kishore is a first-year student at BC Law. Contact her at kishorsa@bc.edu.
A Grateful Listener: Family Court Judge Reflects on Lessons Learned
Today I’m very pleased to be able to host a guest blog from the Hon. James V. Menno ‘86, who recently retired after more than two decades of service as an associate justice of the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court.
Despite the number of people sitting on the hard benches in this sunlit courtroom, there is a respectful silence. An ordinary person is sitting in the witness box. She has taken an oath to tell the truth. Her descriptive answers to her attorney’s questions begin to weave together a story. It is a deeply personal story that provides unique insight into her and the children of her fractured family. She tells this story to another ordinary person, me, who also happens to be the judge. We are separated by a bench, a black robe and the roles we play. But we are joined together as co-participants in the daily unfolding of the actual Rule of Law.
Her role is to honestly tell the difficult story that has led to this moment. Tomorrow, her husband will sit in the same chair and do the same. My role is to listen to them as unique individuals, determine which facts are true, and (utilizing the applicable law) make a decision that will allow them and their children to transition from one family to two single-parent families. Whew! What a daunting task this is for both of us, the storyteller and the listener.
BC Law: Impact 