In this clinic, you write (usually one, sometimes two) appellate briefs to the Michigan Court of Appeals for parents who have had their legal rights to their children terminated in a lower proceeding. You spend some time early on in class sessions talking about the basics of the child welfare and foster care system, but the bulk of the class – and the focus of the clinic, and weekly supervision – is really deep and intensive feedback on your writing. If you’re looking for something that feels more “real” than Campbell or Appellate Advocacy but practices the same skills, this is a good option. Both Vivek and Tim are great to work with and I really enjoyed my experience. Caveat, as with all clinics – your partner makes a big difference! You’re working on a substantive piece of writing together, and you have to trust the other person to hold up their end of the work and take feedback well as a team.
I wrote one appellate brief for the Michigan Court of Appeals for a mother who had her legal rights terminated. The beginning of class is all about building skills in fake cases and learning about the child welfare system generally. But when the trial court transcripts come in, you’re on the clock and only have a certain amount of time before your brief is due. This is slightly frustrating because not everyone’s transcripts come in at the same time, and you don’t have a way to predict.
Tim and Vivek are both incredible, and they care deeply about child welfare and about improving your writing. Lots of individual attention. 10/10 would recommend.
MLaw Prof Reviews
In this clinic, you write (usually one, sometimes two) appellate briefs to the Michigan Court of Appeals for parents who have had their legal rights to their children terminated in a lower proceeding. You spend some time early on in class sessions talking about the basics of the child welfare and foster care system, but the bulk of the class – and the focus of the clinic, and weekly supervision – is really deep and intensive feedback on your writing. If you’re looking for something that feels more “real” than Campbell or Appellate Advocacy but practices the same skills, this is a good option. Both Vivek and Tim are great to work with and I really enjoyed my experience. Caveat, as with all clinics – your partner makes a big difference! You’re working on a substantive piece of writing together, and you have to trust the other person to hold up their end of the work and take feedback well as a team.
I wrote one appellate brief for the Michigan Court of Appeals for a mother who had her legal rights terminated. The beginning of class is all about building skills in fake cases and learning about the child welfare system generally. But when the trial court transcripts come in, you’re on the clock and only have a certain amount of time before your brief is due. This is slightly frustrating because not everyone’s transcripts come in at the same time, and you don’t have a way to predict.
Tim and Vivek are both incredible, and they care deeply about child welfare and about improving your writing. Lots of individual attention. 10/10 would recommend.