Law Schools

Law School Students Form COVID-Fighting Pro Bono Group

If law students are looking for a way to help, consider this model.

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Students looking for something to do this summer may want to consider stepping up to offer their services to benefit organizations trying to stem the legal calamity that’s following the cornavirus pandemic. After all, summer programs are shortening and canceling right and left, so students have to keep their research skills honed somewhere.

At the University of Michigan Law School, rising 2L Maiya Moncino founded the MLaw COVID Corps and, to date, some 200 law student volunteers have signed up to provide pro bono help to Michigan organizations.

Organizations that have worked with the group are grateful for the help in these busy times:

“The COVID Corps supported several of our high priority COVID-19 rapid response projects, including outreach, writing, legal analysis, and data gathering,” said Liz Ryan, President & CEO at Youth First Initiative, an organization calling for the release of incarcerated youth amid the pandemic. “They did an outstanding job on these projects. We were so impressed with their dedication, professionalism, and high quality work!”

The MLaw COVID Corps is organized into four task forces: Decarceration, Workers’ Rights and Small Business Support, Housing Rights, and Voting Rights. They boast 15 projects at the moment and are still looking for more now that finals are finished. Organizations looking for help can sign up here at COVIDCorps.

If your law school hasn’t organized something like this, it’s a project worth considering. While students can lead the charge like they did here, law schools could also consider building impromptu clinics out of these challenges. However groups like these form, the need is out there, so get to it.

An earlier version said that 200 students had already provided help. The volunteer list is 200 but the Corps has only placed 41 so far. That’s why they’re looking to expand opportunities!

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HeadshotJoe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

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