Professional Skills Training

Litigation and Dispute Resolution

A large component of law school is mastering the essential skills needed to effectively implement the practical legal knowledge acquired in the classroom while developing the confidence needed for successful law practice. Through DePaul's skills curriculum, students learn to try cases, negotiate agreements and resolve disputes. Our professional skills training includes the Clinical Program, the Field Placement Program, moot court competitions, mediation programs and a variety of advanced legal drafting courses.

Clinical Program

• Asylum/Immigration
• Community Development
• Criminal Appeals
• Death Penalty
• Technology/Intellectual Property

Field Placement Program

With more than 2,000 externship placements in the last 30 years, the Field Placement Program has become a central part of students' skills training at DePaul. Cooperative externships allow students to gain valuable career experience while making important professional contacts. The program offers placements with various government, legal service and nonprofit agencies in many areas of law.

Commercial Law: Students have worked with agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Trade Commission.

Criminal Justice: Students have argued cases in court rooms under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 711 while working for the Illinois Attorney General, the Cook County State's Attorney, the Cook County Public Defender, the Corporation Counsel for the City of Chicago and the U.S. Attorney.

Environmental Law: Students have worked with the Environmental Protection Agency.

Family Law: Students have externed with an Illinois Circuit Court, Domestic Relations Division judge and legal aid agencies such as Chicago Volunteer Legal Services.

Judicial: Students have drafted opinions for judges in the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, United States District Court, United States Bankruptcy Court and Illinois Circuit Court .

Health Law: Students have worked with health care agencies such as Rush University Medical Center, Advocate Healthcare and the American Medical Association.

Intellectual Property Law: Students have assisted inventors, a rtists and arts communities such as the Steppenwolf Theatre and Lawyers for the Creative Arts.

International Law: Students have worked with the United States Customs Service.

Labor Law: Students have externed with organizations such as the Illinois Education Labor Relations Board .

Tax Law: Students have been placed with the Internal Revenue Service.

Regardless of where students choose to extern, the Field Placement Program requires that a judge or an attorney supervise each student and ensure that he or she engages in meaningful law - related experiences. These field supervisors work closely with students, sharing their insights and expertise. Each student also is assigned a full-time faculty mentor who provides additional direction and counseling.

Moot Court Society

Continuing DePaul's tradition of graduating exceptional court room advocates, dedicated faculty coaches assist student teams in various intramural, local and national moot court competitions, allowing them to practice their trial advocacy, client counseling and negotiation skills. The society sponsors competitions to promote written and oral advocacy skills, including the Intramural Appellate Competition, in which student teams analyze and brief a hypothetical appellate problem and argue the case before practicing attorneys and judges. Other teams participate in the Intramural Trial Competition, analyzing a civil or criminal action, presenting witness examinations and delivering opening or closing statements. Winners of these competitions then compete with law schools from around the country.

Client Counseling and Negotiation Competitions

Students in the Client Counseling Competition interview and counsel mock clients to elicit the information necessary to give the client the best advice, while students in the Negotiation Competition focus on the skills needed for effective and successful negotiation. Performance is judged by panels of lawyers, psychologists and social workers, and the winning teams re p resent DePaul at competitions sponsored by the American Bar Association.

Mediation Programs

In Advanced Mediation, students work with mediators on cases referred by the Cook County Domestic Relations Courts and learn essential client counseling skills.

Drafting Skills

Starting with the rigorous Legal Analysis, Research & Communication program and culminating with a senior research paper, the College of Law prepares students to be skilled lawyers. In addition to an array of specialized writing courses, such as Appellate Brief Writing and Judicial & Scholarly Writing, students can hone their writing skills while exploring certain subjects in-depth by joining any of seven student-edited legal journals and digests. These publications include the DePaul Law Review, DePaul Business & Commercial Law Journal, DePaul Journal of Health Care Law, DePaul-LCA Journal of Art & Entertainment Law, Environmental Law Digest, International Law Digest and Women's Law Digest.

Professional Skills courses include:

Advanced Legal Research Advanced Legal Writing Advanced Legal Writing: Patents Advanced Legal Writing: Trademarks Advanced Mediation Appellate Brief Writing Appellate Technique Arbitration Business Planning Client & Community Relations Dispute Resolution Field Placement Program Judicial & Scholarly Writing Legal Analysis, Research & Communication I, II & III Legal Clinic: Asylum/Immigration

Legal Clinic: Criminal Appeals Legal Clinic: Death Penalty Legal Clinic: Technology/Intellectual Property Legal Drafting Legislation Litigation Strategy: Bankruptcy Litigation Strategy: Child Protection Litigation Strategy: Intellectual Property Litigation Strategy: Marital Dissolution Litigation Strategy: Pre-Trial Civil Litigation Strategy: Pre-Trial Criminal Mediation Moot Court Negotiations Product Liability Skills Trial Advocacy I & II