The Family Law Clinic prepares law students to serve individuals and families through supervised legal advocacy in matters involving custody, child support, divorce, domestic violence, and guardianship.
Family Law Clinic
Message from the Clinic Director
In the Family Law Clinic, students learn quickly that family law requires more than knowing the law. You must know how to listen. You must know how to ask the next right question. You must know when to slow down and when to stand firm. That kind of advocacy matters because our clients deserve to feel seen, heard, and supported in a system that can often feel overwhelming.
Under faculty supervision, our students appear in court, draft pleadings, counsel clients, and begin to understand the responsibility that comes with being trusted with another person’s story. By the time students leave the Clinic, they understand that access to justice is not just a principle we teach. It is a responsibility we carry and a commitment we practice.
Katrina L. Smith
Clinic Director and Supervising Attorney
Student Information
The Family Law Clinic offers a focused, small-cohort experience where law students build advocacy skills while helping clients navigate important issues involving custody, support, divorce, and related matters. Enrollment is limited to 10 students and offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
Info Accordions
- A one-year clinic experience that supports continuity in family law matters and allows students to grow through sustained client representation.
- Training, guidance, and supervision from an attorney with more than 16 years of legal experience.
- Hands-on experience with client communication, case planning, file management, court preparation, filings, and community-based legal service.
- Opportunities to assist with and lead File-It-Yourself divorce clinics, participate in and host family law webinars, author community legal education materials, and support other access-to-justice initiatives.
- Regular class sessions, team meetings, and supervision meetings that connect family law doctrine, professional judgment, client-centered advocacy, and bar readiness.
- A professional clinic environment that emphasizes confidentiality, ethical judgment, preparation, accountability, professionalism, and respect for clients, courts, and community partners.
Through participation in the Family Law Clinic, students will:
- Apply North Carolina family law statutes, rules, and case law to real client matters involving custody, child support, domestic violence, divorce, and related family law issues.
- Strengthen issue-spotting, legal analysis, and problem-solving skills by working through the facts, procedure, and strategy of active client matters.
- Develop client interviewing, counseling, and communication skills through trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and client-centered representation.
- Build practical judgment through fact investigation, records review, case assessment, and thoughtful litigation planning.
- Draft pleadings, motions, affidavits, consent orders, client correspondence, and other legal documents with clarity, accuracy, and attention to procedural requirements.
- Develop advocacy skills through court preparation, oral argument, negotiation, and, where appropriate, witness examination and cross-examination.
- Practice the core competencies reflected in modern bar readiness, including legal analysis, written and oral communication, client counseling, negotiation, professional responsibility, and sound judgment.
- Manage client matters with diligence, organization, accountability, and respect for deadlines.
- Strengthen professional identity through reflection, service, and a commitment to expanding access to justice for individuals and families.
- Open to upper-level law students.
- Completion of, or concurrent enrollment in, the Family Law doctrinal course.
- Trial Practice is highly recommended, but it is not required.
Potential Client Information and Clinic Services
The Family Law Clinic accepts case referrals throughout the year; however, legal representation is not guaranteed. Acceptance depends on case type, clinic capacity, educational value, and academic calendar limitations.
Because the Clinic follows the law school’s academic calendar, services may be limited during the following periods:
- Second week of November through the third week of January.
- Second week of April through the first week of September.
During these periods, individuals seeking assistance may be placed on a waiting list or referred to another organization.
Info Accordions
Services provided by the Family Law Clinic may include:
Legal Advice and Information
Individuals seeking legal advice or information must first complete an initial screening. If the matter is accepted for further review:
- A law student will be assigned to conduct an intake under faculty supervision.
- After the intake, the law student will research the legal issue and consult with the supervising attorney.
- Legal advice or information may then be provided under faculty supervision.
The estimated turnaround time is approximately 7–10 business days after the intake, though timing may vary based on student obligations, case complexity, and supervising attorney’s availability.
File-It-Yourself Divorce Packet
- Individuals may purchase an absolute divorce packet year-round for a fee of $20.
- The packet includes instructions and forms needed to file for an absolute divorce in Durham County, North Carolina.
- The packet is limited to absolute divorce and does not include property division, alimony, post-separation support, child custody, child support, or other related claims.
File-It-Yourself Bundled Services
- For a fee of $50, law students may prepare selected family law documents for eligible individuals through the Clinic’s Bundled Services program.
- Eligible matters may include divorce, child custody, child support, modification, and enforcement.
- Individuals receiving Bundled Services are provided information on how to file their documents and complete service.
- The Clinic does not appear in court or provide ongoing representation in Bundled Services matters.
Full Representation
In selected cases, the Family Law Clinic may provide full legal representation to eligible clients. Full representation may include:
- Client counseling.
- Legal research.
- Drafting and filing pleadings.
- Negotiation.
- Court preparation.
- Court appearances by law students under faculty supervision.
Acceptance for full representation is determined on a case-by-case basis and depends on the Clinic’s capacity, the availability of law students, the timing of the referral, and the complexity of the legal matter..
Referrals to Other Organizations
When the Clinic is unable to provide legal advice, document assistance, or full representation, individuals may be referred to other legal service providers or community organizations. Referrals may be appropriate when:
- A matter falls outside the Clinic’s practice areas.
- Immediate assistance is needed.
- The Clinic is operating with limited capacity.
- Another organization is better suited to address the legal need.
The Family Law Clinic primarily serves individuals and families with limited financial resources who need assistance with North Carolina family law matters.
Because full representation requires court appearances and ongoing case supervision, full legal representation is generally limited to qualifying matters filed or pending in Durham County or Wake County.
Individuals with North Carolina family law matters outside Durham County or Wake County may be considered for legal advice, information, or limited document assistance, depending on the nature of the matter and the Clinic’s capacity.
Clinic Highlights
Info Accordions
Students share how their Family Law Clinic experience shaped their understanding of courtroom advocacy, client service, and access to justice.
Shelby Thomas ’24 reflects on how her Family Law Clinic experience helped shape her interest in family law and strengthened her commitment to public service.
Contact Information
Info Accordions
For questions about clinic services or eligibility, please contact the NCCU Family Law Clinic:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 919-530-7166
We are committed to providing professional, community-centered service and responding to inquiries in a timely manner.