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26 Clinical L. Rev. 287 (2019-2020)
Clinical Legal Education and the Replication of Hierarchy

handle is hein.journals/clinic26 and id is 295 raw text is: CLINICAL LEGAL EDUCATION AND THE REPLICATION OF HIERARCHY MINNA J. KOTKIN* It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief it was the epoch of incredulity, . . . Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities Trite as they may be, no words could better describe the state of clinical legal education today in the United States. Let us consider first the best. Since the 2008 recession, both the legal and law school marketplace have experienced a marked decline in demand, resulting in sea changes in those institutions. Most experts now agree that there is no going back; these declines represent the new nor- mal. As a matter of economy, law firms want practice ready grad- uates. Taken together with the more general attempt to make law school more attractive to qualified undergraduates, the siren call of every law school today is experiential learning. What clinicians have been touting for the last 40 years has finally taken root with a vengeance. There is not a law school in the country that does not give pride of place to its clinical offerings in its marketing efforts. And indeed, this is more than fluff. Law schools have vastly expanded in- house clinical programs, externship opportunities, and course offer- ings that integrate some element of experiential learning through sim- ulations or practicums. It is fair to say that few law students graduate today without a good dose of experiential education.' But what about the worst? This article explores two major un- intended consequences or perhaps more accurately, aspects of collat- eral damage, resulting from the triumph of clinical education. The damage relates to the replication of hierarchy, both in the structure of the academy, and in the provision of legal services. First, in order to meet the demand for experiential learning and to secure their status * Professor of Law and Director, Employment Law Clinic, Brooklyn Law School. For the title of this essay, a hat tip to Duncan Kennedy, Legal Education and the Reproduction of Hierarchy, 32 J. LEGAL ED. 591 (1982). 1 In fact, in 2015, the ABA adopted Accreditation Standard 303(a), which provides: A law school shall offer a curriculum that requires each student to satisfactorily complete at least the following: .... (3) one or more experiential course(s) totaling at least six credit hours. AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION SECTION OF LEGAL EDUC. & ADMISSIONS TO THE BAR, STANDARDS AND RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR APPROVAL OF LAW SCHOOLS 2018- 2019. 287

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