ADR MATTERS: WORKS CLINIC PROVIDES EXCELLENT EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES By Promise Costello, JD Candidate May 2022, USD Knudson School of Law Introduction by Linda Lea Viken, ADR Committee Chair: The WORKS CLINIC, an ongoing project of the SD State Bar ADR Committee, continues to grow to more areas of our state with the help of the USD Knudson School of Law. This month, I asked one of the law students working on the Clinic to provide a report to the members of our state bar about her experiences. I hope you enjoy learning about the WORKS CLINIC from Promise’s perspective as much as I did. Having spent the majority of the Spring Semester of my 1L year at home due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, I was eager to jump back into school in the Fall 2020. During the Fall Semester of my 2L year at the University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law, I registered for the WORKS (Working Out Resolutions for Kids) CLINIC. This Clinic was a fantastic opportunity to combine my interest in Family Law with my passion for public service while fulfilling the experiential learning requirement at the law school. The mission of WORKS CLINIC is to assist participants who are filing for a divorce and are unrepresented. To qualify for our services, participants must fall within 200% of Federal Poverty Guidelines. Along with the inability to afford an attorney, many participants using the Clinic often do not speak English as their first language and face other social challenges. Because of these barriers, participants often cannot understand and complete the forms without assistance. During my semester in the WORKS CLINIC, our supervisors, Marilyn Trefz and Kelly Collinsworth, trained us on how to use the court approved UJS divorce forms to assist participants in filing their initial forms. In addition to substantive training, we also received extensive training on the ethical obligations of working with sensitive communities of Sioux Falls. In a typical WORKS CLINIC session, law students educate the participants about the content of the forms and the decisions they need to make to complete them. Law students help participants complete their Initial Case Filing Statement, the Summons, the Complaint form, the Financial Affidavit, and any fee waiver forms required. In subsequent sessions, we help them
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