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• Degrees
• Environmental Law Center
• International and Comparative Law Programs
• Clinics and Experiential Programs
• Criminal Law Clinic
• Semester in Practice  
• Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic  
• South Royalton Legal Clinic  
• Land Use Clinic
• Judicial Externships
• Part-time JD Externships
• MELP and LLM Internships
• Legislative Clinic
• Dispute Resolution Clinic
• General Practice Program
• Legal Writing Program
• Dispute Resolution Program
• Academic Success Program
• Focused Studies
• Summer Session
• Journals and Competitions
• Registration Information

Clinics and Experiential Programs

Dispute Resolution Clinic

The Dispute Resolution Clinic (DRC) offers students the opportunity to practice non-litigation dispute resolution skills and strategies in the real-world setting of New Hampshire and Vermont courts. Students observe and contribute to court-based mediation sessions of claims cases and bring their experiences back to the classroom where they review and analyze their cases in clinic-style rounds. 

DRC students study under the guidance of Professor Robin Barone, administrator of small claims mediation programs in two Vermont courts and in Lebanon New Hampshire District Court. "Mediation," Professor Barone says, "is never boring." Conflict theory, problem-solving strategies, public policy, and social justice issues are discussed in the classroom and later applied in real-time mediation sessions. Students spend 24 hours observing and participating in mediation of small claims cases and come away from the course with a deeper understanding of the complexities and advantages of mediation.

The American Bar Association notes that in the future, "dispute resolution...will become an integral part of every attorney's practice." Through the DRC, students gain the first hand experience that will help prepare them for a future in which non-litigation dispute resolution plays a critical role.