The Criminal Prosecution Clinic – Kings County (CPC – KC) engages students in the prosecution of criminal cases in conjunction with the Brooklyn District Attorney (KCDA) under the supervision of adjunct professors. The course begins with a six-week intensive training program. Afterwards, students begin fieldwork devoting three full days per week.

Each student works closely with a faculty supervisor on misdemeanor cases at all stages of the criminal process, from arraignment through trial.

Students will appear in arraignments at New York City Criminal Court, appear on record in court, conduct client and witness interviews, conduct investigations, review police reports and other discovery material, draft motions and memoranda of law, develop case theory and litigation strategy, and conduct or second chair hearings and trials.

All student work is conducted under the supervision of the faculty supervisors. The faculty supervisors are intimately involved in the students’ cases and work closely with the students in the development of case theory and strategy and in the preparation of the cases.

This clinic is organized as two co-requisite courses for the full year – a seminar and fieldwork component.

During the fall semester, there are twice weekly seminars. The Monday seminars focus on selected topics in criminal law and procedure, evidence, ethics, and lawyering skills and are a mixture of discussion, demonstration, simulation and critique.

The Wednesday seminars are “case rounds” where students raise and discuss issues they are confronting in their cases.

During the fall semester, students are expected to regularly devote 21–28 hours per week to the course, including both seminars and fieldwork, and to spend additional time as required by their cases.

During the spring semester students continue to work on their misdemeanor cases and attend weekly “case rounds” seminars and are expected to regularly devote 12–16 hours per week to the course, including both seminars and fieldwork, and to spend additional time as required by their cases.

The course is graded on a letter basis. Grades for both semesters are posted at the end of the spring semester. Material covered in this clinic are tested on the New York Law Exam (NYLE).

Approved for the Experiential Learning Requirement. Enrollment is limited. Registration is binding. Application and interview are required, and the application can be found on the Office of Clinical and Experiential Learning section of the NYLS Portal.

Recommended for the Following Professional Pathways: Criminal Prosecution; Government/Public Sector; General Practice – Litigation/Dispute Resolution

Prerequisite or Co-requisite: Criminal Law; Criminal Procedure: Investigation; Evidence; Professional Responsibility: Criminal Practice.

If taken as co-requisites, courses should be taken concurrently with the clinic in the fall semester. Requirement may be waived by clinic faculty.

Recommended Courses: Advocacy of Criminal Cases; Trial Advocacy and Criminal Procedure: Adjudication (Process: Arrest to Trial).

11 Credits: Full Year Course
Fall: 7 credits
Spring: 4 credits