Clinic - Fairbridge Investor Rights Clinic

Two semesters required. Under faculty supervision, students handle arbitrations and mediations before FINRA Dispute Resolution on behalf of investors of modest means who have arbitrable disputes with their securities brokers. Students will work on critical lawyering skills including client interviewing and counseling, fact investigation, claim evaluation, participating in discovery, legal research, preparation of legal memoranda, working with experts, conducting an arbitration or mediation, or negotiating a settlement. Student teams meet regularly and frequently with each other and with the clinical faculty throughout the year. Students may also draft comment letters on SEC or FINRA rule proposals, write amicus briefs, and participate in investor education and advocacy programs. The Clinic meets once a week as a seminar to study the substantive law of broker-dealer regulation, arbitration theory and practice, and lawyering skills. Students also will participate in several simulations during the seminar. Seminars will also explore public policy considerations for investors. Private practitioners, Securities and Exchange Commission attorneys, and FINRA staff may assist in the teaching of the seminar. Permission of the professor, based on application and interview, is required. Prerequisite: Professional Responsibility. Lawyering, Trial Advocacy, and Corporations & Partnerships are recommended. Preference is given to third- and fourth-year students.