Petitioning the Maryland Parole Commission on behalf of an incarcerated person who killed their partner in self-defense. Advocating before the General Assembly for changes to the standards for parole for the elderly and the infirm. Filing for a change of name and gender identity for an incarcerated transgender client. In the Gender, Prison, and Trauma Clinic (formerly the Gender Violence Clinic) you will examine the ways in which gender and violence intersect in the lives of your clients, most of whom are incarcerated in Maryland and the federal system.
Student attorneys in this clinic handle gender violence cases before courts and administrative agencies on the state and federal level. In the seminar portion of the class, you will learn the skills that you will need to represent clients: interviewing, fact investigation, legal storytelling, counseling, and litigation techniques. Working in teams, you will meet regularly with Professor Goodmark to discuss case theory, case strategy, and the individual and systemic issues raised by your clients and cases. From client-centered lawyering to the impact of trauma on clients to the ways in which race and gender affect perceptions of victimization, Gender, Prison and Trauma Clinic students investigate and critically analyze the ability of the legal system to provide relief to people subjected to gender violence.
You really can't replicate the sort of experience you get being in a clinic, especially the Gender Violence Clinic, outside of the clinic environment. It's just such a good way to prepare yourself for real law work.Hayley Wolf '23