The John Marshall Law School Veterans Legal Support Center & Clinic (VLSC) is in the midst of a fundraising campaign to raise $100,000 for a matching grant. The donations will help with the renovation of space for the clinic in the law school’s 19 W. Jackson building.
An anonymous corporate donor has pledged $100,000 as a challenge grant if VLSC can raise the matching $100,000 by Oct. 31. Donations are being accepted at www.jmls.edu/give.
In addition to the challenge grant, the donor is awarding $10,000 outright to help the Clinic construct new facilities.
“This significant support will allow the VLSC to work with veterans in a more dignified manner, and better accommodate the ever-increasing number of veterans seeking benefits,” said Brian Clauss, co-executive director of the VLSC.
“The current space in the law school requires veterans, many of them disabled, to use elevators and maneuver in cramped hallways,” he explained. “The new space will feature street level front door access and will more than double the space of the current site.”
At its founding in 2007, the VLSC was one of the nation’s first law school clinics dedicated solely to veterans’ issues. Today the Clinic serves as a model for other law schools interested in establishing a veterans’ clinic.
The VLSC provides a clinical training experience for John Marshall students while serving the larger needs of veterans pursuing Veterans Administration benefits. Veteran’s legal representation during the appeals process is handled through a statewide network of pro bono attorneys who have been specially trained to assist with veterans claims.