Indiana University Bloomington

Primary Navigation

Opportunities for Students

Sample horizontal photo

Clinic Program

Disability Law Clinic

Through the Disability Law Clinic, second- and third-year students work with individual clients and disability rights groups to address discrimination and to access benefits and services designed to assist low-income people with disabilities.

People with disabilities face challenges to full participation in American society, while low-income people with disabilities face the added challenges that poverty entails. These challenges are intensified when advocates, bureaucrats, and decision makers are insensitive to—or fearful or ignorant of—the situations and needs of poor people with disabilities.

In a small class setting, students learn basic law regarding Social Security and Medicaid disability benefits and develop skills in:

  • Client interaction
  • Research and writing
  • Advocacy
  • Administrative practice
  • Cultural competence
  • Collaboration

Because students are assigned in pairs as the primary case handlers for their clients, they engage in all stages of case development from intake to appeals. Opportunities to reflect on their experiences in class and in meetings with the clinic director encourage students to develop their identities as lawyers, including their approaches to problem-solving, decision-making, social justice, and professionalism.

Clinic fieldwork includes individual client representation and participation in community projects that advocate disability rights. Most individual cases involve claims for federal and state disability benefits at administrative hearings and appeals. Though students are not required to continue working beyond the end of the semester, some do to bring their clients and projects to a good transition point.

Requirements and Evaluation
  • Enrollment limited to second- and third-year students.
  • Completion of The Legal Profession is required for certification under the student practice rule.
  • Permission of faculty supervisor is required for enrollment.
  • Returning students may serve as mentors to a new class of students, for independent clinical or research credit, with permission of faculty supervisor.

Participants in the Disability Law Clinic must:

  • Commit to an average of ten to twelve hours per week (including four hours of scheduled office time per week and a weekly supervision meeting during office hours)
  • Attend two 90-minute classes weekly (first half of course)
  • Meet biweekly for case rounds (second half of course)
  • Be interested in working with people who have disabilities

Students receive ongoing feedback on their development as lawyers through the weekly supervision meetings. In addition, two formal evaluations occur at mid-semester and the end of the term. The mid-semester evaluation is a self-evaluation designed to allow time for correction and improvement in the student’s learning. The final evaluation is conducted by the faculty supervisor and focuses on several areas, including decision-making and judgment, client interaction, advocacy, research, analysis, and writing, and professional responsibility.

Final grades take into account both professional standards of practice and progress made by students during the semester.

Contact the Disability Law Clinic

Clinic Director: Carwina Weng
E-mail: wengc [at] indiana [dot] edu
Phone: (812) 855-9229 or (812) 855-9809
Fax: (812) 855-5128
Room: Lewis Building 301

B553: Disability Law Clinic course description