Program Overview

Overview of the Wrongful Convictions Clinic

The Wrongful Convictions Clinic is an investigative and litigation clinic that pursues plausible claims of legal and factual innocence made by incarcerated people in North Carolina convicted of serious felonies. Students in the clinic study the causes of wrongful convictions, including mistaken eyewitness identification, false confessions, faulty forensic evidence, “jailhouse snitches,” and race.

Program Details

• Course Number: 493
• Course Credits: 4
• Evaluation Method:
  • Practical exercises
  • In-class exercise
  • Live-client representation and case management
  • Class participation
• Instructor: James E. Coleman, Jr., Jamie T. Lau
• Degree Requirements:
  • JD elective
  • JD experiential
  • JD Standard 303(c)
  • IntlLLM-SJD-EXC elective
  • PIPS elective
  • PIPS experiential
• Pre/Co-requisites: Any ethics course (Law 231, Law 237, Law 238, Law 239, Law 317, or Law 539)

Clinic Description

The Wrongful Convictions Clinic investigates North Carolina prisoners' claims of actual innocence and wrongful conviction. Students typically work in teams of two on one inmate's case. Among other things, the teams meet with the client (in prison), read and digest trial transcripts, interview witnesses, consult with experts, prepare investigative and legal strategies, and, if the case is ready, prepare the comprehensive Motion for Appropriate Relief to have the client's conviction overturned.

Seminar Component

The seminar component of the Clinic examines the principal problems that lead to the conviction of the innocent and the leading proposals for reform, including mistaken eyewitness identification, false confessions, faulty forensic evidence, the role of forensic DNA testing, post-conviction remedies for innocence claims, the use of "jailhouse snitches" and other cooperating witnesses, incompetent defense counsel, and police and prosecutorial misconduct. The seminar also includes skills-training sessions, during which students gain training in negotiation, interviewing, writing, and more.

Student Requirements

During the semester, students are required to perform a minimum of 100 hours of client work (in addition to weekly seminar preparation and attendance). Students must also attend the Clinic Intensive Training Day scheduled early in the semester, which is conducted collectively with the other Duke Law Clinics.

Learning Outcomes

• Legal analysis and reasoning, legal research, problem-solving, and written and oral communication in the legal context
• Other professional skills needed for competent and ethical participation as a member of the legal profession

Course Areas of Practice

• Civil Litigation: Practice and Procedure
• Constitutional Law and Civil Rights
• Criminal Law and Procedure
• Law, Democracy, and Society

Course Type

• Clinic

Sample Syllabi

• 493-02-Spring2024-syllabus.pdf
• 493-01-Fall2023-syllabus.pdf

Offerings by Semester

The Wrongful Convictions Clinic is offered in various semesters, including Spring 2026, Fall 2025, Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, and Spring 2016. Each semester's offering may have slightly different details, but the core program remains the same.