Legal Clinics and Externships at TU Law

07/07/2023

It is with great sadness that I write to let you know that our beloved colleague, Elizabeth McCormick, aka Betsy, passed away this morning after a fierce battle with ALS. In her typical warrior fashion, Betsy fought this horrid disease with everything she had and then some, advocating not only for herself but for others and their families stricken by ALS.

Betsy was a mentor and a dear friend to me and to so many colleagues, students, community members and leaders. She was truly a warrior for justice who began her academic career with Jon Bauer at the University of Connecticut where they started the Asylum and Human Rights Clinic. After spending a year as a visitor at Cornell, Betsy then came, if you can imagine, to Tulsa, OK to start an immigration clinic: the Immigrant Rights Project. Oklahoma was as red in 2005 when she came as it is now. Indeed, Betsy came in the midst of the passing of Oklahoma version of state anti-immigrant law. Yet no politics or politician or naysayers got in her way. She not only established the Immigrant Rights Project in an anti-immigrant world, but Betsy also educated our local police department such that there was an organized and efficient mechanism to obtain law enforcement certifications from the Tulsa Police Department for our clients who had been victims of crimes or trafficking, a requirement to obtain U and T visas. Again, this she did in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Betsy also recognized that Tulsa’s noncitizen community needed more – year-round legal services as well as community and professional education and broader advocacy about immigration process and justice. At the same time, she wanted to protect her law students’ time in clinic by allowing them the time we all hold dear for reflection and deep work on their cases rather than overloading them with multiple clients.

So, Betsy started what turned out to be the second incubator program in the country, the Tulsa Immigrant Resource Network (TIRN), to work in conjunction with the Immigrant Rights Project. Betsy’s vision lives on to this day as TIRN now celebrates its 15th year. Over the years, Betsy, her students, and TIRN worked together to represent asylum seekers in removal proceedings in the harsh Dallas court, advocate for the termination of the contracts between ICE and the Tulsa County Sheriff, take students to the border to provide free legal services to asylum seekers, provide immigrant detainees in Oklahoma with Know Your Rights presentations and legal consultations, and to provide direct legal representation to families who otherwise would be left to navigate a complex and cruel system themselves.

Betsy was also a scholar and a tenured professor at the University of Tulsa College of Law. She served as the first Associate Dean of Experiential Learning here until 2019. Her scholarship was brilliant yet practical, such that I still consult it today. And her commitment to the University of Tulsa College of Law was extraordinary. During the last few years of her career, Betsy served in the Fall 2021 as Interim Dean, and also served several semesters as the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. She did not retire until this past May.

Last year, because we wanted her to know how much we love her and are in awe of her work, we started the Elizabeth McCormick Immigration Justice & Advocacy Fund. Launched by generous gifts from two private donors here in Tulsa, the family has requested that in Betsy’s memory, those so inclined to do so donate to this fund that is used to support the cost of immigration advocacy in Tulsa for our clients. The link is below, and I have also included a link of a video from May 2022 in which I am interviewing Betsy on the history of her work here, and in which our Dean announces what we call here at our clinic “The Betsy Fund” to her.

https://utulsa.edu/university-advancement-alumni-engagement/giving-opportunities/mccormick-immigration-justice-and-advocacy-fund/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2MNMM3ZcK8

Betsy’s legacy lives on, but there is now a huge hole not only in our hearts but in our University Community. Her voice, her perspective, her expertise, her passion for justice, and her commitment to advocacy will be greatly missed. The world seems a little darker this morning.

11/05/2022

This year’s BC Franklin Lecture Series speaker was John W Franklin, grandson of BC Franklin, for whom our BC Franklin Legal Clinic is named. After his extraordinary presentation, he moderated a discussion with two of our star advance Clinic students, Jack Schaefer and Connor Doyle.

The University of Tulsa College of Law hosted historian John Whittington Franklin for the 22nd Annual Buck Colbert Franklin Memorial Civil Rights Lecture

11/02/2022

UPDATE: REUNITED!! Biscuit is home safe & sound after 1 days, 0 hours :)

"Our lovely neighbor noticed her on our roof. Thank you all!! 🥰"
-Biscuit's Owner
Please spread the word! Biscuit was LOST on November 1, 2022 in Tulsa, OK 74128 near 11th & Garnett, Oak Brook Village

Message from Owner: She is very sweet but scared of almost everything. If you shake some cat treats and call her, she should come right up to you. Please find her. We miss her so much. She is 2 years old.

Description:

For more info or to contact Biscuit's owner, click here: https://www.pawboost.com/p/8463017

Lost or found a pet? Report it to PawBoost here: https://pbrs.io/l/rpl

06/28/2022

Legal observers (LOs) deploy to protests, demonstrations, and other First Amendment protected actions to monitor for and document infringements of the rights of participants, including abuse by law enforcement. If you'd like to serve the movement by being part of the Legal Observer teams, especially with folks taking to the streets to protest the recent unjust actions of the government, message for information about trainings. Look for training sessions to drop Wednesday PM and over the weekend.

02/18/2022

TU LEGAL CLINIC IS HIRING!
Job Title: Department Assistant II

The University of Tulsa College of Law Legal Clinic (the “Clinic”) is seeking a full-time, Spanish-speaking Department Assistant to be a part of our dynamic legal team. This position is to begin immediately and is an opportunity to be a part of important Community work in Tulsa.

The Clinic provides free legal representation to clients from traditionally underrepresented communities who otherwise may not have access to a lawyer. The Clinic serves as a training ground for law students and new lawyers to clients, who take the lead in our clients' cases. Our cases are interesting and challenging, and we are continually expanding our programs.

We rely heavily on our Department Assistant to ensure smooth administrative operations that complement our legal training programs and our legal service delivery. The Department Assistant is responsible for managing our front desk operations as well as providing administrative support to our attorneys, law students, and legal fellows. The Department Assistant’s job duties include providing interpretation for client meetings and community events such as intake or Know Your Rights sessions, completing an initial screening of potential clients' legal needs, managing client communications through the client database, and assisting with training law students and new lawyers on our client database.

Minimum Qualifications:

bilingual English/Spanish proficiency
high school diploma·
experience with Microsoft Office programs
excellent organizational, communication, and customer service skills
demonstrated effectiveness in working with a diverse group of people

Apply here:

01/20/2022

I am excited to announce that the University of Tulsa College of Law Legal Clinics are hiring a full-time staff attorney for our new Buck Colbert Franklin Legal Clinic.

Our Clinic is named for Buck Colbert Franklin, who was a Black attorney who held likely the first pop-up clinic in the Country post-the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. He set up one of the Red Cross tents and saw clients with his law partner and secretary. He successfully litigated against the City of Tulsa’s racist ordinance that was past immediately after the Massacre. It is his legacy that we have the honor and privilege of carrying on.

We officially launched the BC Franklin Clinic in the Fall 2021 and are working on prisoner civil rights, excessive sentencing, expungement and parole cases. The Clinic has also taken some family law cases and we intend to expand our services to representing parents in deprived proceedings. We are also going to be working with local partners on tax lien foreclosure cases, title clearing cases and assisting new entrepreneurs in setting up businesses.

The staff attorney position is an exciting opportunity to be in on the ground floor of developing legal services for north Tulsa.
The staff attorney will be supervising the law students’ client work and will be responsible for the Clinic’s cases year-round. A minimum of 5 years’ experience practicing law is required, with licensure in Oklahoma or eligible to be licensed in Oklahoma. The full description of the position and how to apply is at the link directly below.

12/22/2021

Once again, I am so grateful to the Community of north Tulsa and its welcoming with open arms our Buck Colbert Franklin Legal Clinic. In this podcast, Carlos Moreno and Devin Williams interviewed one of my students of the launch semester of the Clinic, Mason McMillon, and me. But I learned so much from Carlos and Devin - who are walking encyclopedias of history, the law, systemic isms, movements, civil rights and more. The interview of us starts at about 26:04 - the segments before on gerrymandering and Julius Jones, and those after on the First Americans Museum, the Holidays and saying goodbye to legends like bell hooks, Eddie Faye Gates, and Greg Tate are also brilliant.

Focus: Black Oklahoma is a news and public affairs program covering topics relevant to the Black community statewide. The show seeks to inform the public through stories and interviews, engage the community through lively discussion, and spotlight local artists and creators.

11/17/2021

The inaugural class of the Buck Colbert Franklin Legal Clinic knocked it out of the park today, presenting the findings of their legal needs assessment of the North Tulsa and Greenwood Ave communities. So proud of these folks. Watch the presentation here. Here is the Panopto link to the Presentation.

https://utulsa.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=4520d96a-a94b-432d-9904-ade1017cd7c9

05/19/2021

Students, we will be watching this in the BC Franklin Legal Clinic this coming fall.

Lawmakers held a hearing to mark the centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre - when a white mob attacked residents, homes and businesses in a predominantly Black neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

05/19/2021

I realize it’s summer but students, this is crucial to hear.

Today, survivors and descendants of the 1921 massacre will testify before the US House Judiciary Committee.

They will share their stories, elevate the voices of many and call for justice in the form of reparations.

These survivors and descendants of survivors have for too long seen justice denied by our city, our state and our nation. They are heroes.

I am proud, humbled and honored to stand with them today in this pivotal moment in our history.

Reparations are not “divisive”.
They are past due.

The eyes of the world are on Tulsa.

Click here to watch: https://youtu.be/SM3evloMtAA

05/11/2021

Memories from Karnes trip! Benj Moser