By Karen Sloan
\nNational Law Journal
\nSept. 29, 2016<\/p>\n
What\u2019s 30-feet long, stocked with law books, and red all over?<\/p>\n
Mitchell Hamline School of Law\u2019s so-called Wheels of Justice\u2014a recreational vehicle retrofitted into a mobile pro bono law office.<\/p>\n
The St. Paul law school on Thursday unveiled its latest public service initiative, the Mobile Law Network, which will dispatch students across Minnesota in the aforementioned R.V. to perform pro bono legal services for those in need.<\/p>\n
Administrators say it\u2019s the only program of its kind at a U.S. law school, though several other law schools partner with legal service providers to hold mobile law clinics. The University of Detroit Mercy School of Law in 2008\u00a0launched a similar<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0R.V.-based program geared toward helping veterans, but later discontinued it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re very committed to access to legal services,\u201d said Mitchell Hamline dean and president Mark Gordon. \u201cWe are very committed to students getting hands-on, practical learning experience. I think this is great way to marry the two.\u201d<\/p>\n Gordon came up with the idea for the project and rounded up about $40,000 in donations to get it up and running.<\/p>\n The used, 20-year-old R.V. didn\u2019t immediately impress students when it appeared in the law school\u2019s parking lot over the summer, Gordon said. But their enthusiasm has grown since the hulking camper was spruced up and emblazoned with the law school\u2019s name and colors.<\/p>\n The law school removed the R.V.\u2019s bed to create two separate spaces where students can conduct confidential interviews. It\u2019s also outfitted with internet access and laptops.<\/p>\n The school plans to partner with legal services providers across the state to assist their clients on expungements, family law matters and health care directives, though the scope of offered services is likely to grow, Gordon said. For now, the initiative is strictly a volunteer opportunity for students. They won\u2019t receive academic credit for participating, though clinical faculty have expressed an interest in incorporating the Wheels of Justice into their formal coursework, Gordon said.<\/p>\n The hard-to-miss motor home may also prove an effective recruiting and alumni outreach tool. Alumni in smaller areas may volunteer to supervise students when the Wheel of Justice rolls into town, Gordon said, and it has already caught the eye of a few prospective law students.<\/p>\n One college senior has asked to participate in the initiate even before she enrolls at the law school, he added.<\/p>\n He sees the project as a way to refute the perception that law schools drain students of the idealism they initially bring to campus. \u201cI think this sends a signal that says we\u2019re not here to beat the idealism out of you,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re here to encourage the idealism in you. We\u2019re really excited to get this on the road.\u201d<\/p>\n