THE GW SMALL BUSINESS CLINIC
The purposes of the GWUSBC are to provide skills training to George Washington University law students as part of the Law School's clinical legal education program and to provide legal assistance to selected small businesses and nonprofit organizations that cannot afford to pay a lawyer. Clients are seen by appointment only. Most of our clients are microbusinesses comprising 1-5 persons with less than $35,000 in start up capital.
The Clinic's clients are aided with the help of second- and third-year law students who work under the supervision of a full-time law professor and supervising attorney who directs the program. The students have full course loads, in addition to their work at the Clinic, and each student generally has two to four clients per semester. The students must allocate their time between these various clients and their other classes, and therefore, the Clinic does not provide a rush service.
The students work closely with the supervising attorney, gaining practical experience in client interviewing and drafting legal documents, such as articles of incorporation, by-laws, contracts, and applications for licenses and permits. They also provide other legal research along with tax and business counseling. For practical purposes, the student is responsible for all aspects of representing their clients, including scheduling meetings, drafting legal documents, phone consultation, file maintenance and keeping clients abreast of their work and progress.
Because the clinic is a free service, and one of only a few small business legal clinics in the D.C. area, its services are in high demand and resources only allow us to handle a limited number of cases each semester. We choose which clients we can help according to a range of factors which include the variety in our case load, the number of clients we already represent and the complexity of the client's case. Preference is given to clients who have developed a written business plan. If we are unable to help a client in a given semester, we may be able to place the client on a wait list so that they may be assisted the following semester or refer the client to another legal resource.
The Clinic does not handle litigation, draft business plans, engage in financial negotiations, develop loan packages, prepare tax returns or engage in complex business transactions. Clients are expected to seek the services of an accountant or tax advisor.
We provide a wide range of legal services including drafting articles of incorporation, bylaws for corporations (for profit and non-profit); creating limited liability companies, reviewing leases, conducting legal research on specific problems, business licenses and permits, trademark and copyright applications, contract drafting and contract review.
The Clinic requires all prospective clients to come in for an initial consultation, before we will accept a case. The client must complete an Application for Legal Assistance before he or she is eligible for consideration. After the initial consultation, the Director in conjunction with the students who conducted the interview, will make a decision on whether the Clinic can accept the case. A prospective client will be notified by telephone or mail of our decision. Whether or not we can accept a case depends on a variety of factors such as the complexity of the case, the size and variety in our case load, and whether the client has a business plan.
Once a case has been accepted, the client is responsible for filing all legal papers with the appropriate government agency and paying any filing fees. The client should get draft copies of documents back to the student with corrections or feedback, if any, as soon as possible. The client must make a commitment to attend scheduled meetings with the student assigned to his or her case, and call the student if they need to cancel a scheduled meeting. We reserve the right to end our relationship with the client if he or she is not complying with our requests for information or neglects to call when they cannot attend a scheduled meeting.
Legal services are provided on a short-term basis. We will keep confidential the information clients discuss with us. Cases will be discussed by students enrolled in the course and with the supervising attorney.
The Clinic cannot serve as ongoing legal counsel for a business. Draft or final documents can usually be delivered within several weeks, depending on the complexity of the case and the client's diligence and attention to the case.