Law Clinics and Externship Program

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.

“In a judicial externship at a juvenile and probate court, I worked with the judge and interacted with attorneys, probation officers and local police. I used the research and writing skills I learned in class to see how the judge would apply the material.”

Felicia Washington-Valentin, second year law student

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. In 2019, our clinic and externship students logged:

5,000 Hours providing pro bono legal services
1,100 Hours in courtrooms, making oral arguments or conducting trials
500 Hours with clients
2,000 Hours working on client cases for the ONU Legal Clinic

ONU Law Clinics

Represent clients in real-life legal matters at the ONU Legal Clinic in Lima, Ohio. 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. You’ll be closely supervised by the director of law clinics and the clinic staff attorney. The clinic houses two separate legal clinics. The Civil Litigation Clinic represents clients on matters such as family law, housing, expungements, probate and other matters. The Corporate Transactional Clinic represents non-profit organizations and local churches in corporate matters, including incorporation, obtaining tax exempt status with the IRS, and real property issues. The clinics provide free legal services to individuals and organizations that would otherwise not be able to afford legal representation.

Gain experience providing legal assistance to non-profit organizations such as the West Ohio Conference of the United Methodist Church (comprising roughly 1,300 churches) as well as other local non-profit organizations. You will be able to assist in a variety of issues, including real estate transfers, incorporations and risk management.
The ONU Legal Clinic functions as a traditional “legal-aid” clinic providing services to members of the surrounding communities. Here you will face a variety of issues including family law, social security disability and general civil litigation. The yearly caseload for this program is between 200 and 250 cases and you will be supervised by a licensed staff attorney.

Working at the Legal Clinic in Lima, Ohio

In pursuit of purpose

Your legal career gets real through ONU Law clinics and externships.

Externships Lead to Opportunity

The skills you learn in externships will make your resume stand out. We have 10 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.
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.
You will explore law in government settings with placement in facilities such as the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office and the Ohio Pharmacy Board. You will be supervised by attorneys within the organizations to conduct research, draft memos and engage in other law-related activities.
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.
In this program, you will be supervised by a licensed attorney at either a union or an organization that specializes in labor and employment law. You’ll draft memoranda and briefs, participate in arbitration proceedings and gain experience in a variety of other legal concerns relating to the field.
The externship prepares you to represent clients in civil litigation matters such as family law, landlord/tenant disputes and other general civil litigation matters at a local legal aid organization, supervised by practicing attorneys.
You will work with municipal government solicitors or city law directors on civil litigation and criminal matters arising within local governments.
Through this program, you will work with practicing attorneys and administrators to actively assist non-profit organizations on a variety of legal issues.
This program places you in a prosecutor’s office under the supervision of a licensed practicing attorney representing the state in criminal prosecutions.
Through this externship, you will gain experience in a local public defender’s office representing defendants who cannot provide their own counsel.