Ending the Hurt at Home
Clinic gives law students experience in restraining domestic violence.

By Karen Feldscher

When women come to the Dorchester division of the Boston Municipal Court Department to seek a restraining order, many just stare blankly at the form they're handed by the clerk.

Often, they've had no prior dealings with the legal system. Just taking the first steps toward getting the order may feel overwhelming. The paperwork may seem confusing and intimidating. Some of them don't speak English well.

But a dedicated band of Northeastern law students know how to guide these women—and some men—through the legal system's complexities toward help in escaping domestic violence. Every quarter, anywhere from six to ten second- and third-year students volunteer at the Dorchester court as part of the School of Law's Domestic Violence Clinic.

The fifteen-year-old clinic, run by senior clinical specialist Lois Kanter, provides, she says, "a genuine service to both the individual woman and the court, and also really trains students in the basics of domestic violence."

Students prepare for the clinic with two weeks of intensive training, says supervising attorney Kathy Garren.

They learn about the impact of domestic violence on victims, survivors, and children. They're given the particulars of the Massachusetts restraining-order statute and some background in family law. They do role-playing related to interviewing and prepping clients, and participate in mock hearings.

"We try to give them Domestic Violence 101," Garren says.

Then they step right into the real thing.

"Students introduce themselves [to clients] and offer their services, often in the hallways of this very busy trial court," explains Garren. "We've trained them to ask people what brought them to court, to really listen to their story before turning to the complaint."

Also, Garren says, students discuss "whether it really is safe to get a restraining order. That's a huge piece of what we do, because there are many cases where a restraining order actually escalates the violence."

After the interview, students help clients fill out the necessary paperwork and decide what sort of restraining order to request. Students also advise clients on where to find additional help, such as counseling, support groups, women's shelters, and legal services.

Later, students may help clients prepare for restraining-order hearings, check to ensure the police actually serve an order that's been issued, and offer their clients advice or clarification on legal matters in court.

Sydney Hanlon, first justice of the Dorchester court, says the students provide a much-needed service. "Having the students available to spend time with plaintiffs on safety planning and seeing what kind of assistance they need outside the court is extremely valuable."

"I've had many clients who were grateful there was someone there with them,adds Ana Dubrovsky, a second-year law student who participated in the clinic over the summer.

During their brief time with clients, students do what they can to help, says Cliff Eisenhut, a third-year law student who served in the clinic last spring. "It's a matter of trying to put them in the best situation you can, in the week or two that you know them, so they can break the cycle of violence."

Karen Feldscher is a senior writer.

  Lois Kanter (second from left) with law students Daniel Miller, Martin Magnusson, and Sarah Affel.
  Photo by Tracy Powell