Provisionally Approved for Fall 2002 July 9, 2002
LEGAL ADVOCACY
Level III
RATIONALE: We often confront adverse decisions made by a government agency, business, or non-profit organization. For example, a tenant living in public housing may be notified that the housing authority intends to evict her. A worker may be told she has been fired. A recipient of public assistance may receive a notice that his benefits have been reduced or terminated. Sometimes, these decisions can be challenged only with the assistance of a lawyer. However, there are often informal proceedings available to challenge these decisions and in many instances the proceedings do not involve the application of strict, trial-type evidentiary or procedural rules and permit an aggrieved person to be represented by a non-lawyer advocate. Many workplaces have such proceedings as part of a collective bargaining agreement or personnel manual. Public housing grievance procedures and hearings relating to public assistance also fall within this category.
An advocate must determine what the desired outcome is, give advice regarding available options to achieve that outcome, gather information from a range of sources, identify and compile supporting documentation, develop a legal theory and a strategy for achieving a desired result, and present to a decision maker in an appropriate format a coherent factual story and argument in favor of the outcome requested.
This competency encompasses the basic skills that are necessary to effectively represent an individual in an informal legal proceeding.
COMPETENCY: Can prepare and present a persuasive case on behalf of another individual in an informal proceeding affecting the legal rights of that individual.
CRITERIA:
1. Elicit relevant factual information from an individual seeking to change or uphold a decision by a government agency, business or non-profit organization.
2. Identify and explain the range of legal outcomes possible in the situation and assist the individual in selecting the one s/he would find most beneficial.
3. Identify the most appropriate forum for the presentation of the individuals claim and the procedures which need to be followed.
4. Identify the legal principles supporting the claim.
5. Identify further sources that may provide information necessary or useful in making the most persuasive presentation, and elicit or obtain the information from those sources.
6. Design and deliver a presentation of the facts, legal principles, and arguments in support of the claim.
7. Evaluate the presentation.
PORTFOLIO LINK: You are expected to use the Level II Communications Portfolio writing standards as guidelines for the essays required by this competency. At a minimum, writing should demonstrate Level I Communications Portfolio standards
STANDARDS:
1. For Criterion 1, the decision must be one that has significant legal or personal consequences for that individual.
2. For Criterion 2, the outcome desired by the individual should be one which is within, or related to, a range of identified legal outcomes.
3. For Criterion 3, the forum must be one which permits non-lawyers to represent or advocate for other individuals. In identifying the procedures, citations to the governing legal sources must be given.
4. In identifying the legal principles called for by Criterion 4, citations to the governing sources must be given.
5. For Criterion 5, if the information cannot actually be obtained, the student should include an explanation of how it would or could be obtained and identify any obstacles which have prevented or may prevent this.
6. For Criterion 6, the student must develop a step-by-step plan for preparing and making the presentation.
7. For Criterion 7, the evaluation should include an assessment of the following: the extent to which the desired outcome was achieved and the reasons for this; why other available options were not pursued; what could be done differently in future presentations, and why.
EXAMPLES OF DEMONSTRATION:
1. Prior Learning: A student is a shop steward at work and presents a portfolio of her/his activities in representing other employees to present grievances. The student does an oral presentation to a faculty member accompanied by written evaluation of those activities.
2. Independent Learning: A group of students develop a manual for residential gas and electric customers whose service has been terminated or who have been threatened with termination. Toward this end, the students either represent some individuals at hearings or role-play the hearings.
3. Course: A student takes a course in Administrative Advocacy and role-plays a hypothetical case relating to unemployment compensation claims in which the assignments require the student to engage in activities meeting the competency criteria.
4. Project-Based Learning: In a collaborative project with a workers’ rights group, a student analyzes remedies available to non-unionized workers whose employment is governed by grievance procedures in a personnel manual. The student assists one or more employees to present a grievance and evaluates the presentation.