USD Magazine Fall 2026

13 USD’S LEGAL CLINICS APPELLATE CLINIC Established 2009 HOUSING RIGHTS CLINIC Established 2022

Law student Sierra Arguilez assisted the Veterans Legal Clinic at the 2026 Stand Down event which offers resources to homeless veterans.

STATE SALES AND USE TAX – CALIFORNIA CLINIC Established 2010 A joint effort between USD Legal Clinics and the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, the clinic places students under the supervision of an attorney from the CDTFA’s Taxpayer Rights Advocate Office to represent clients appealing California Sales and Use Tax determinations. Represents veterans and their families before the Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense, focusing on VA disability appeals, military record corrections and cases involving military sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury and PTSD. Meets the legal needs of women, men and families, providing assistance related to human trafficking, domestic violence restraining orders, child custody and guardianship matters and dissolution cases. WORKERS’ RIGHTS CLINIC Established 2016 In collaboration with Legal Aid at Work, provides free legal advice to low-income workers in San Diego County on a variety of employment law issues, including employee rights and unemployment benefits. VETERANS CLINIC Established 2012 WOMEN’S CLINIC Established 2020

Handles cases referred from the pro bono panel at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, taking each appeal from brief writing through oral argument.

Provides low-income community members with legal assistance related to housing instability, including homelessness, eviction, foreclosure and threats to housing such as uninhabitability and harassment.

COLLABORATIVE IMPACT

CIVIL CLINIC Established 1971

Although the 13 clinics have their specific focus areas, they don’t operate in isolation. Clients who come to the Housing Rights Clinic sometimes need immigration help. Veterans navigating disability appeals may also be going through a divorce. A victim of domestic violence may have a housing crisis too. The clinics share staff, common spaces and a culture of collaboration that faculty and students describe as one of USD Law’s defining qualities. “It really made me understand and appreciate how our legal clinics function as one law firm,” Parker said. That collaborative culture extends beyond San Diego. In May 2026, Brown, Levin and Parker presented together at the AALS Conference on Clinical Legal Education in Portland, Oregon, on the ethical challenges of representing vulnerable clients in an increasingly difficult legal environment. It was the first time a USD Law clinical faculty group had presented at the conference, just one of the latest signals of how far the program has come since its volunteer origins in 1971. Even as the clinics continue to explore more opportunities for impact, their purpose and value remain clear. As Dean Robert A. Schapiro said at the Class of 2026 graduation ceremony for the legal clinics, “For more than 55 years, our clinics have provided free legal assistance to those members of our San Diego community most in need. This is the place where our students begin to confront humanity’s challenges.”

Represents clients in a range of civil litigation matters including consumer issues, breach of contract, fraud, uninsured motorist defense, consumer debt collection disputes, civil rights cases and access to government information under FOIA and the Public Records Act. Represents the parents of students with disabilities in cases ranging from IEP eligibility and services, placement, discipline and expulsion, 504 plans and limited conservatorships. ENTREPRENEURSHIP CLINIC Established 2005 Provides transactional legal services for technology startups and emerging growth companies, assisting entrepreneurs with business entity structuring, financing regulations and related legal needs. FEDERAL TAX CLINIC Established 1999 Represents lower-income taxpayers in disputes with the Internal Revenue Service, including collection action, audits, earned income tax credits and offers in compromise. EDUCATION AND DISABILITY CLINIC Established 2003

IMMIGRATION CLINIC Established 1984

Assists immigrants and their families with a wide range of immigration related matters, including immigrating family members, work authorization, naturalization, derivative citizenship, deferred action (such as DACA — Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), Immigration Court (removal cases), asylum and immigration assistance for victims of crime, domestic violence and abuse. Partners with The Innocence Center, an independent nonprofit dedicated to freeing wrongfully convicted people from prison, to give students the opportunity to review wrongful conviction cases alongside experienced attorneys. A joint effort between USD Legal Clinics and the Franchise Tax Board (FTB), this clinic places students under the supervision of an attorney from the FTB’s Taxpayer Rights Advocate Office to represent taxpayers with state income tax disputes at the California Office of Tax Appeals. INNOCENCE CLINIC Established 2026 STATE INCOME TAX CLINIC Established 2008

“For more than 55 years, our clinics have provided free legal assistance to those members of our San Diego community most in need. This is the place where our students begin to confront humanity’s challenges.” ROBERT A. SCHAPIRO, JD, DEAN AND C. HUGH FRIEDMAN PROFESSOR OF LAW

MODERNIZING SPACES FOR THE FUTURE OF LEGAL EDUCATION

The University of San Diego School of Law has long cultivated practice-ready attorneys equipped to solve the world’s most pressing legal challenges. To create spaces worthy of USD’s prestigious legal programs, the School of Law is launching a bold initiative to transform its campus footprint by creating state-of-the-art classrooms, collaboration workshops and modernized legal clinic spaces. These enhancements directly elevate the student experience, empower faculty research, strengthen client services and foster deeper connections with with community, alumni and employer networks.

FIGHTING FOR THOSE WHO SERVED The Veterans Clinic has never had trouble finding clients. What it has trouble with right now is keeping up with them. At its peak, the clinic was managing 165 open matters with four attorneys. Demand surged as many nonprofits lost federal funding and a wave of veterans began retiring from service. A new California law signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in February 2026 cracked down on so-called claim sharks, unaccredited companies charging veterans anywhere from $2,000 to $30,000 to handle VA disability claims that accredited representatives handle free of charge. The clinic has been fielding calls from veterans who have been exploited by exactly these kinds of operators. Alison Brown ’13 (JD), PhD, who supervises the clinic alongside a staff attorney, found her way to a career in law after earning her PhD in philosophy

from Florida State University, where her concentrations included philosophy of law, action theory, responsibility, luck and ethics. Her vision and leadership inform how the clinic helps veterans with VA disability appeals, corrections of military records, and cases involving military sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury and PTSD. James Spradley ’23 (JD), a Coast Guard veteran who attended USD Law, was part of the Veterans Clinic as both a 2L and a 3L, returning for a second semester after he had already been hired by the California Attorney General’s office. He now works in the Special Prosecutions Section of the California Department of Justice, handling complex criminal cases involving financial fraud and public corruption. The skills he developed in the clinic continue to be valuable. “It can be hard to get somebody to invest in you and teach you and train you how to be a lawyer,” he said. “That was critical as far as what the Veterans Clinic did for me.”

EXPLORE MORE about how your support can light the way for legal education. sandiego.edu/key-initiatives/ initiatives/law.php

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