Southern Illinois University Simmons Law School is expanding its legal clinics to provide more experiential learning opportunities for students and to increase the availability of legal services in Southern Illinois.
The law school currently operates Civil Practice and Juvenile Justice clinics. Dean Hannah Brenner Johnson announced plans to introduce additional clinic opportunities, supported by a recent grant from the Lawyers Trust Fund. This funding will establish a Clinical Legal Fellow position dedicated to supporting the Civil Practice Clinic. Additionally, starting in fall 2026, a new clinical course on immigration law will be available for third-year students, taught by Professor Cindy Buys.
Expanding student involvement in client service is “a significant priority,” said Brenner Johnson. “It helps our students develop the skills necessary to become practice ready by the time they graduate.” She also noted that faculty support for expanding clinical programs was part of the school’s strategic plan.
In these clinics, second- and third-year students earn academic credit while working under supervision. Their responsibilities include counseling clients, preparing documents, conducting intake interviews, and making court appearances under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 711 through special licenses.
Dale J. Aschemann, who oversees the Civil Practice Clinic as a clinical associate professor of law, stated that eight students per semester typically handle eight to twelve clients each at any given time. In 2025 alone, the clinic assisted 305 individual clients with 648 separate matters such as wills and guardianships for adults with disabilities or minors lacking legal capacity.
Brenner Johnson described establishing the Clinical Legal Fellow position before summer as an “important first step” toward expanding services further. According to Aschemann, this could allow an additional 35 clients to receive assistance in 2026. The expansion efforts include applying for grants and seeking donor support; priorities include serving veterans and survivors of domestic violence.
The new immigration law clinic will focus on providing information and resources to noncitizens held in civil immigration detention. Students will participate one semester at a time through a partnership with The Immigration Project based in Bloomington, Illinois. Professor Buys explained: “Their attorneys and staff will help coordinate interviews, provide interpreters, and supervise our law students.” Previously involved with similar work at Tri-County Detention Center until 2021, Buys noted that detainee intake interviews now occur virtually or by phone due to changes in state policy regarding detention facilities.
Students enrolled in this course will observe virtual hearings with immigration judges while gaining knowledge about substantive immigration laws as well as constitutional and administrative law procedures. They are expected to improve interviewing skills and learn how to work effectively with interpreters during proceedings involving detained immigrants—many of whom lack access to legal advice or representation.
“Noncitizens have a right to due process including a right to be represented by counsel at their own expense, as ‘persons’ protected by the Fifth Amendment,” said Buys. “Many of the noncitizens in detention have pending applications for immigration benefits such as asylum. We aim to make sure they know their rights and understand the legal processes, regardless of the ultimate outcome of the matter. Given the increasing number of noncitizens being detained over the past year, the need for assistance is growing exponentially.”
Dean Brenner Johnson emphasized that meeting unmet regional legal needs remains central since SIU’s founding more than five decades ago—a mission reflected today by alumni holding over 200 state and federal judgeships among more than 4,000 practicing graduates nationwide.
“They help students gain practical experience as they are preparing to be lawyers and also serve the legal needs of the community,” she said about legal clinics’ dual role. “This is particularly important in Southern Illinois where there is a shortage of lawyers in many rural areas. This means that many people have difficulty obtaining legal assistance and accessing critical legal services.”
Law students often gain additional experience through internships or externships at organizations such as Land of Lincoln Legal Aid Services (https://lincolnlegal.org/), private firms (https://www.isba.org/), courts (https://www.ilcd.uscourts.gov/), or prosecutor/public defender offices (https://www2.illinois.gov/osad/pages/default.aspx). “Those internship and externship experiences are also a crucial part of law students’ professional development,” added Brenner Johnson.” The clinic provides just one more opportunity,” she said.
