법학전문대학원에서 임상교육 실시방안에 관한 연구

On March 2, 2009, new legal education system will begin in Korea. Dozens of universities are preparing American-style graduate-level law schools. One distinguished feature of law schools lies in educating lawyering skills and value. Legal clinics are considered to be the best method in teaching law students lawyering skills and value by having them handle live cases. However, even in the United States, clinics are recent phenomenon. American law schools began to launch legal clinics in significant numbers in the 1960s. Nowadays clinics are popular with students, though there are much room for development. The purpose of clinical education can be summerized as teaching lawyering skills effectively, giving motivation to study substantive law, and doing social justice. Especially the last one is important as students can learn the value of lawyering job by practice. It can be said that the clinics are rooted in a soical justice mission. Clinic clients should be poor and socially disabled. Clinic lectures and directors should be lawyers with a long experience of practicing the law. In the U.S., clinical facuty is not the same to law faculty. Most clinic teachers are not on a tenure track. Lots of practicing lawyers are taking clinic classes as adjuct professors. Clinical program models can be divided into four: the university law firm, the community law center, the faculty-supervised clinic and the extership. The university law firm provide clinic programs in a variety of fields in the school, while the community law center is located in a community where legal advices is desperately needed. In addition, law faculty members can establish a special clinic for only a small number of students. Also students can earn academic credit by working in government and non-profit organization as an intern. It is desirable that each clinic program include a seminar. By attending a seminar in addition to representing clients in real cases, students may learn the relevant law and basic lawyering skills they need to work as a team. The seminar also serve as a workshop for students to present their case. In Korea, the best model for legal clinic is yet to be found. All law schools should make every effort to find it, though it may take some time.