Law Clinics and Externship Program
ONU Law guarantees that you’ll receive high-impact training to become an attorney. Our exceptional law clinics and externship program adds value to your degree by providing real world experiences and mentors.
Availability
We provide 100 percent placement--plain and simple. You don’t have to complete a lengthy application or put your name on a waiting list. You simply meet directly with the clinic director to devise a plan of action that works with your career aspirations.
“The Legal Clinic provided me with the opportunity to develop my counseling, writing and advocacy skills in a practical, real-world setting under the guidance of experienced faculty members who genuinely care about my success as a future attorney."Dalton Stewart, JD '24
Learn By Doing
Every year, our law students log hundreds of hours meeting with clients, making oral arguments in courtrooms, writing legal briefs, attending court hearings and trials, and more. On average, our clinic and externship students log:
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5,000 Hours providing pro bono legal services
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1,100 Hours in courtrooms, making oral arguments or conducting trials
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500 Hours with clients
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2,000 Hours working on client cases for the ONU Legal Clinic
ONU Legal Clinic
Represent clients in real-life legal matters at the ONU Legal Clinic in Lima, Ohio. Under the close supervision of licensed attorneys, you’ll get hands-on experience doing things that real lawyers do, such as assuming responsibility for clients, confronting complex legal matters, interviewing clients, appearing in court, and drafting legal documents.The ONU Legal Clinic houses two separate legal clinics. The ONU Litigation Clinic provides a limited range of legal representation free of charge to individuals in nearby surrounding counties who cannot afford private attorneys or who cannot obtain other available legal assistance. The ONU Transactional Clinic provides free legal representation to a variety of non-profit organizations, including churches, and to individuals interested in establishing a 501(c)(3) organization. Click below to find out more information about these two clinics.
Do You Need Legal Assistance?
The ONU Legal Clinic is a teaching law firm that offers the community a limited range of legal services free of charge through either its Litigation Clinic or Transactional Clinic by ONU law students who are supervised by licensed attorneys. Click below to find out more information about these two clinics.If you are interested in obtaining legal services, please fill out the online application. If you have any questions about the application process, please call the Clinic at 419.227.0061 and select “1” for intake applications. The Clinic is opened by appointment only from 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
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Represents non-profit organizations and local churches in corporate matters, including incorporation, obtaining tax exempt status with the IRS, real property transactions, and risk-management issues. The Transactional Clinic also assists qualified individuals with drafting estate planning and probate administration documents.
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Functions as a traditional “legal aid” clinic and represents clients on matters such as family law, housing, expungements, social security disability, and other general litigation matters. The ONU Litigation Clinic also assists the community by hosting a variety of pro se legal educational events.
Preparing You for Life After Law School
Faculty members bring a wealth of real-world experience and professional insights into the classroom. This ensures students will develop the necessary skills for a successful legal career.
We may be a small law school, but our graduates are doing big things and others are taking notice. When you choose ONU Law, you are choosing a college with a rich tradition and a vast and accomplished network of attorneys—5,300 strong—who want to see you succeed.
Externships Lead to Opportunity
The skills you learn in externships will make your resume stand out. We have several different types of placement opportunities available, and placement is 100% guaranteed.-
You may be placed with bankruptcy trustees in the Lima and Toledo areas, as well as a judicial externship with a federal bankruptcy judge. These specialties allow you to actively research, draft pleadings, and make court appearances, giving you real-world experience.
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Engage in research, draft pleadings and participate in other activities pertaining to environmental law through our program with the Ohio Environmental Council, a non-profit advocacy group located in Columbus, Ohio.
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You will explore law in government settings with placement in facilities such as the Ohio Attorney General’s Office or the Ohio Pharmacy Board, and will work with municipal government solicitors or city law directors on civil litigation and criminal matters arising within local governments.
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Here, you'll have the opportunity to be placed with a variety of judges in areas such as municipal court, juvenile court, probate court, common pleas court, the Ohio Supreme Court, the Ohio Appellate District Court, federal district court or federal bankruptcy court. You'll observe court proceedings and perform court-related duties assigned by a judge including research, writing and more.
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You will work with practicing attorneys and administrators to actively assist legal aid and other non-profit organizations on a variety of legal issues. You will be supervised by attorneys within the organizations to conduct research, draft memos and engage in other law-related activities.
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This program places you in a prosecutor’s office under the supervision of a licensed practicing attorney representing the state in criminal prosecutions.
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Through this externship, you will gain experience in a local public defender’s office representing defendants who cannot provide their own counsel.
Where you could end up
Check out some of the places where our law students engage in externships. We will tailor an experience based on your interests and needs.
