Student Law Clinic

While we do have limited capacity at this time, we can accept new enquiries to our waiting list.

Use the form to submit your enquiry, and our Legal Administrator will be in touch to take further details. If we're unable to assist you, we'll provide details of alternative services that you may wish to consider, where possible.

If you have already enquired with us then you will remain on our waitlist until we have a student advisor available to assist you. This could take several weeks but we'll update you as soon as possible. The Law Clinic operates on a part-time basis so it will inevitably take much longer for us to deal with enquiries than if you were to contact a firm of solicitors. We deal with enquiries in the order that they arrive.

If you have enquired with us but your legal issue has become urgent, then we would advise that you seek alternative legal advice such as from a solicitor or one of the organisations listed below.

If you are an existing client, email law-clinic@sunderland.ac.uk or call 0191 515 2550 (voicemail facility only). If your matter has become urgent, such as a court date coming up soon or deteriorating health, we recommend you seek legal assistance elsewhere, such as:

• A solicitor, who you can find via the Law Society website or by calling 020 7242 1222
• North East Law Centre for employment, family, immigration, and benefits law advice. Call 0191 230 4777
• Support Through Court for those without legal representation in court. Call the National Helpline: 03000 810 006
• Your local Citizens Advice Bureau
• Search for other pro bono (free of charge) organisations via the Law Works website.

You can choose to study in Sunderland Student Law Clinic in your final year of your undergraduate studies, and all students studying to become a solicitor on our LLM Legal Practice LPC spend at least half a day each week in clinic, meaning that you have the opportunity to graduate with significant live work experience.

Sunderland Student Law Clinic offers advice and assistance in relation to property/land, family/children matters, divorce, employment law, residential housing, residential landlord/tenant, immigration, wills and probate, and lasting power of attorney.

To date, the Law Clinic has provided assistance to over 600 clients and saved around £500,000 in legal costs. The clinic utilises the industry-standard CRM system, CLiO, providing you with an authentic legal practice experience.

Some of the benefits of working in the Law Clinic as a student are:

• Work as part of a student law firm
• Improve your client interviewing skills
• Gain experience of writing professional legal advice
• Enhance your graduate prospects with real-life practical experience
• Receive training and support from experienced staff and learn the rules and procedures of working in a Law Clinic

Pre-interview

If staff decide that a case can be undertaken, the client will be invited to come to the University for an initial interview. The case will be assigned to a student law firm under the supervision of Clinic staff.

Interview

The student law firm will conduct an interview with the client to find out essential information about the case. The students will then consult with Clinic staff to decide whether the case can be taken on.

Advice

Research will be undertaken into the client’s legal issues surrounding the case. The student law firm will then create a letter of advice which will be sent to the client instructing on a suitable course of action.