MSU Law Clinics,
Centers, & Institutes

MSU LAW CLINIC

The MSU Law Clinic is a law firm staffed by dedicated clinical educators and second and third-year law students that offers free legal services in specific areas of practice:

Chance at Childhood Clinic

A joint program between the College of Law and the School of Social Work, this clinic provides hands-on experience in the types of work that family law and child welfare lawyers will encounter in their practice.

Equitable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Law Clinic

The Equitable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Law Clinic helps guide business owners through the legal processes associated with starting a company and protecting their intellectual property.

First Amendment Clinic

As the only clinical program in the country solely dedicated to the protection of student speech and press rights, this clinic conducts educational programming and maintains an online resource center that provides guidance to high school journalists.

Housing Justice Clinic

In the Housing Justice Clinic, students deal with all aspects of the landlord-tenant relationship, including educating residents on their rights, working with tenants on the brink of eviction, and assisting renters who live in unsafe conditions.

Immigration Law Clinic

Students in this clinic advocate for vulnerable immigrants who would otherwise navigate a complex system without representation: unaccompanied children, victims of crime or trafficking, and people fleeing persecution.

Indian Law Clinic

The Indian Law Clinic’s two areas of primary focus, the Tribal Governance Project and the Indian Child Welfare (ICWA) Appellate Project, support the rights of tribes and Native organizations to nation-building and self-governance.

Alvin L. Storrs Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic

From innocent spouse claims to tax collection problems, the Tax Clinic handles all aspects of controversy with the Internal Revenue Service, providing important tax-related legal services to low-income Michigan taxpayers.

CENTERS AND INSTITUTES

MSU Law’s rich curricular offerings and impressive range of faculty scholarship means that our students and community benefit from an exceptional breadth of expertise. From formal certificate programs to online resource centers, MSU Law offers insight into today’s cutting-edge legal topics.

Animal Legal & Historical Center

A comprehensive repository of information about animal law, the Animal Legal & Historical Center offers over 1,200 full-text cases (U.S., historical, and U.K.), over 1,400 statutes, 60-plus comprehensive explanations, and legal articles on a variety of animal topics.

Conservation Law Center

The Conservation Law Center provides a dedicated course of study in conservation law and natural resource management, as well as a course of practical study in a field related to natural sciences.

Geoffrey Fieger Trial Practice Institute

The selective Fieger Trial Practice Institute’s two-year curriculum covers every stage of the trial process, from pre-trial preparation to jury selection to sentencing, preparing students for high-impact careers in advocacy.

Indigenous Law & Policy Center

One of only a few Indigenous law certificate programs, the Indigenous Law & Policy Center educates law students and trains lawyers to work on behalf of Indigenous people and tribes throughout the country.

Intellectual Property, Information, & Communications Law

This nationally recognized program trains students to play pivotal roles in our information economy: protecting the rights of inventors and creators and ensuring that they share in the benefits of their innovations.

Frank J. Kelley Institute of Ethics & the Legal Profession

Named for the longest-serving attorney general in U.S. history, the Kelley Institute builds upon the dedication, professionalism, and ethical code that distinguished Frank J. Kelley’s service to the state of Michigan.

Center for Law, Technology, & Innovation

The Center believes that innovation through legal research and development will bring the law to everyone: students and faculty explore existing processes and how they produce (or fail to produce) value for clients, creating pathways to efficient legal-service delivery.

McLellan Online Free Speech Library

The McLellan provides a forum for students to ask legal questions and have those questions answered by knowledgeable law students and experts who are passionate about protecting students’ First Amendment speech rights.

Michigan Leadership Initiative

Through one-on-one career advising, guaranteed summer placements, and special access to high-profile alumni, the Initiative provides a small cohort of incoming students with unique opportunities to engage with Michigan’s leaders and to expand on their leadership skills.

Lori E. Talsky Center for Human Rights

The Talsky Center’s mission is to educate MSU College of Law students and the broader community about international human rights and humanitarian law, promoting human rights for all people, with a focus on women and children.