As an intake attorney, Namira Islam provides phone advice and brief services for walk-in clients at Legal Services of Eastern Michigan. A typical day includes giving advice in nearly every area of the law – family, housing, public benefits, garnishments, probate, and more. “I provide extended services for clients in the areas of family law, along with wills and power of attorney documents,” Islam said.

Many clients are facing loss of a home, access to their children, or their paycheck or benefits. “Being able to offer legal knowledge to them in an accessible way and helping them prevent some of these serious things from happening is very rewarding,” she explained. 

While at student at MSU Law, Islam focused on understanding the different legal systems – international human rights, military, state, and federal law. “Having the perspective that law is fluid helps me think outside the box for solutions to clients’ problems,” she added. 

Being involved with the civil rights clinic helped her confidence in interviewing clients and reviewing complex legal documents. “The clinical programs are immensely useful for legal training prior to graduation,” she said. “I highly recommend working in one of the clinics for your last year.”