University of Michigan Law School Civil-Criminal Litigation Clinic

The Civil-Criminal Litigation Clinic provides free legal representation to people who cannot afford to hire an attorney. Clients are represented by law student-attorneys working under the supervision of professors who are licensed attorneys. The clinic has handled criminal misdemeanor cases and a wide variety of civil cases, such as landlord-tenant, consumer fraud, contract disputes, prisoners' civil rights, discrimination, political asylum, torts, habeas corpus, debt collection defense, public benefits claims, insurance, etc. Clinic intake is not "open" - it is based on their educational needs, the number of students and staff available, proximity to Ann Arbor, and our current docket of cases.

The clinic only conducts case intake and accepts new cases from the second week of September to mid-April each year. If you have a court case during our intake period and want to see if you are eligible for assistance, you can call the clinic’s offices at 734.763.4319 or e-mail them at mclp@umich.edu. Based on the nature of your case and other factors, they will determine whether an intake appointment is appropriate. The clinic typically can tell you whether they can represent you during this first appointment.