Civil Advocacy Clinic: COVID-Related Advocacy for Low-Wage Workers
Student Attorneys in the Civil Advocacy Clinic are engaged in COVID-related advocacy this semester as they represent low-wage workers in DC and Maryland. The docket includes wage and hour cases, unemployment insurance appeals, and other civil legal disputes that seek economic justice for clients. COVID-related delays, orders, and moves to online hearings have impacted each case on the CAC docket – new or ongoing. Student Attorneys are exploring innovative ways to advocate for their clients amidst shut-downs of the high-volume courts that typically hear their clients’ claims, significant delays in the unemployment insurance application and appeals processes, and court orders impacting how and where we seek judgments for our clients. The exploration of the court and administrative systems and avenues for justice, through a lens of intersectionality and client-centered lawyering, allows students to learn by applying their legal learning to real-life uncertainty in the justice system.