A legal clinic at the William & Mary School of Law focused on assisting victims of domestic violence is expanding its services with the help of a federal grant.
The law school announced Nov. 11 its Domestic Violence Clinic was the recipient of a $250,000 grant from the Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women.
Law School Dean Davison M. Douglas said the grant would be used over a two-year period to expand the clinic’s services in domestic violence legal education and protective order advocacy.
“[D]omestic violence is an issue of great importance in our nation,” Douglas said in a news release. “We are very pleased to receive the support of the Department of Justice as we help serve the legal needs of victims of domestic violence in our community.”
Started in 1998, the clinic offers legal services to victims of domestic violence on the Virginia Peninsula and Middle Peninsula, and provides training for William & Mary law students in issues relating to domestic violence.
Clinic Director Darryl Cunningham said most of its clients were referred from local shelters, such as Avalon: A Center for Women and Children, although its services are available to anyone in need.
Whether they come to the clinic via a referral or independently, Cunningham said clients were ready to move on and get out of abusive situations.
“Usually when they come to us, they’re ready to make the break,” he said.
The clinic specializes in protective orders, which can provide several kinds of relief for clients. Cunningham said the orders can serve multiple purposes, including awarding temporary custody of children, granting exclusive possession of a residence or prohibiting all contact between parties.
Students participating in the clinic learn how to navigate hearings on domestic violence and how to seek protective orders for clients. Law students in Virginia must fulfill credit hour requirements and achieve basic certifications to appear before the bar, so the clinic is limited to students in their third year of law school.
“Really anything that can help stop the abuse,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham said the grant would help the clinic expand its services in several ways, including offering training to additional law students and hiring a clinic fellow to coordinate its efforts with local domestic violence advocacy organizations.
“[These organizations] often don’t have the ability to connect with each other, because everyone’s understaffed and underfunded,” he said.
The Domestic Violence Law Clinic can be contacted by telephone at 757-221-7446 or online at the law school website.
Correction 11/19/2014 This story has been updated to provide the date of the clinic’s creation. A previous version listed an incorrect year.
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