| The charter purpose of the Harrison Institute
is to provide the legal and policy services essential
for political and economic democracy. As part of a major
university, the Institute integrates its community service
with clinical teaching whenever feasible. Legal education
in pursuit of democratic values is not just skills training.
It encourages law students to strengthen their own commitment
to public service and creates a bond between the law school
and its home community.
This broad statement of purpose is clarified by the
following goals for community service and clinical education.
- Community Service Goals
- Empower community groups.
- Support the organization of community groups
so that citizens can collectively participate
in political and economic systems beyond the
reach of individuals. The groups served by
the Institute include:
- advisory neighborhood commissions
- citywide planning coalitions
- civic and citizens associations
- community development corporations
- condominium associations
- cooperative associations
- housing advocacy coalitions
- nonprofit self-help corporations
- Strengthen community group decision-making
by placing legal services in the context of
broader political and economic goals.
- Strengthen community group understanding
of how the legal process works, its limitations
as well as its uses.
- Promote institutional response to community
needs.
- Serve the legal and policy needs of government
and business when the Institute's services
can improve responsiveness to community needs.
The institutions that the Institute has served
include:
- Center for Policy Alternatives
- Century Council (Los Angeles)
- D.C. Office of Banks & Financial
Institutions
- D. C. Statehood/Compact Commission
- D. C. Taxicab Commission
- District of Columbia Council
- Housing finance institutions
- Individual state legislators
- Library of Congress
- Maryland General Assembly
- Montgomery County Council (Maryland)
- U.S. House District of Columbia Committee
- U.S. Dept. of Housing & Urban Development
- Strengthen institutional decision-making
by identifying alternative policies or legal
mechanisms which would respond to community
needs while serving institutional goals.
- Strengthen institutional understanding of
how its own policy and process affect the
community.
- Clinical Education Goals
- Client relations and legal ethics. Involve students
with a community group or institutional client
relationship that requires:
- Accountability to the client as ultimate
decision-maker in the attorney-client relationship;
- Accountability to the Institute as the means
of assuring competent representation of the
client;
- Zealous representation, particularly in
terms of initiative and creativity in all
areas of clinical practice; and
- Sensitivity to issues of confidentiality
and conflict of interest.
- Planning and accountability. Challenge students
with planning responsibility for general strategy
as well as project management.
- Research and analysis. Sharpen students' skills
on issue identification, legal and policy research
and analysis, with particular attention to the
economic, political and social context in which
legal and policy issues arise.
- Communication skills. Provide students with
an opportunity to develop writing and speaking
skills with emphasis on purpose, audience analysis,
organization and style.
- Personal development. Provide students with
an opportunity to discuss professional goals,
career choices, academic priorities and personal
role in the community.
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