November 14, 2024

Legal Clinic Leaders Series — Grabiela Franco

We're back with our Leader Clinic Leaders series! Meet the students who work directly with and in the community to provide quality legal representation to underserved individuals through our Legal Clinic Leaders blog series. We're excited to spotlight these all-star advocates and showcase the many different fields of law you can explore through our legal clinics and the wide range of opportunities available at Southwestern to gain practical lawyering skills. We hope their experiences will inspire YOU to join a legal clinic.

Meet 4L Grabiela Franco

• Community Lawyering Clinic - Spring, Summer, and Fall 2024

Why did you decide to participate in a clinic?

Participating in a clinic is the part of law school that I was waiting for because I knew I would get the opportunity to work with people and make a difference in their lives. I enjoyed advocating for them and empowering them to advocate for themselves. As much as I enjoy taking doctrinal classes, the clinics give you the opportunity to practice the skills you have been learning about and apply them to real cases.

What skills and knowledge did you learn from your clinic experience?

I loved participating in the Community Lawyering Clinic because it exposed me to different areas of the law and enhanced my research skills. I feel more comfortable dealing with legal issues I may not be familiar with because the clinic prepared me to deal with these situations. I came into the clinic with immigration experience and am walking out with knowledge of family matters, tenant rights matters, social services appeals, and more.

What did you learn about yourself through your clinic experience?

I learned I can truly be that powerful advocate I always envisioned myself to be. I learned to believe in my abilities and never to let fear of the unknown stop me. The clinic pushed me to become that advocate by allowing me to practice my oral advocacy skills through the Legal Empowerment Workshop I hosted and by honing my legal research skills.

What helped take you from student to advocate?

Conducting legal intakes and meeting with potential clients helped take me from a law student to a legal advocate. I learned to listen carefully to their matters, to give them an opportunity to be heard, and to show them compassion, all while figuring out their exact legal issue and working diligently to help them fix it. It was such a rewarding and humbling experience to help people in a time of their lives when they needed an advocate.

What words of advice would you have for future clinic students?

The experience, knowledge, and skills you will receive from a clinic are unmatched. Go into it with an open mind and open heart, and be ready to be challenged in the best way. You will learn and grow tremendously. I am excited for the future clinic students and encourage you to try different clinics throughout your time at Southwestern.

Please share an inspiring anecdote from your clinic.

At the end of the clinic, I held an immigration workshop with the guidance of Professor Vazquez. It was entirely in Spanish, using lay terms so that our audience could understand, and it was such a powerful moment to have the community attend and listen to the free immigration workshop we had prepared for them. For that small moment, I felt like I helped bridge the gap between the immigrant community and access to legal services, and there is no better feeling than that.

Interested in learning more about the legal clinics? Visit our Clinics page here.