Student Legal Services at Syracuse University
Eligibility
If you are a Syracuse University student (excluding law students) or a SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry student, have paid the student activity fee, and are registered on main campus, you are eligible for advice and representation as defined here. (As of the 2005-2006 academic year, all Syracuse University graduate students are eligible to use this service. We reserve the right to verify payment of the student activity fee before services are rendered). Part-time undergraduate students and law students are not eligible.
Funding
This program is funded by the student activity fee. This covers the costs of legal fees and operational expenses. The program is unable to pay court costs, filing fees and fines, all of which must be borne by the student.
Use of this program
The program is available as a service to students. Students are of course free to consult another lawyer of their choice at their own expense. It is hoped that the availability of this service will encourage you to seek the advice of an attorney to avoid legal complications before they involve you in heavy financial or other problems. If you wish to consult an attorney, call 443-4532 for an appointment. The office is located at 760 Ostrom Avenue next to Shaw Hall Dormitory. Please bring your student identification card and all materials or documents relevant to your problem.
The purpose of this program is to provide free legal services to students. The attorneys will advise students on a wide variety of legal problems which occur anywhere. The attorneys will also prepare documents such as simple wills, power of attorney forms and separation agreements. In addition, where a student is a defendant or a potential defendant, legal representation up to and including all stages of trial will be provided in cases which originate in Onondaga County of which the following are representative:
- Landlord - Tenant problems
- Consumer matters
- University disciplinary problems
- University related problems
- Traffic moving violations in the City of Syracuse
- Misdemeanors and certain felonies
- Uncontested matrimonial problems and family law problems
- Negligence suits
If this program is unable to provide representation on a particular legal matter, then we may be able to refer you to another person, service, or agency such as the Lawyer's Reference Service that can assist you. Lawyer's Reference Service is a program operated by the Onondaga County Bar Association to help people find attorneys. Lawyer's Reference Service can be contacted at 471-2690.
Eligibility
Since a student activity fee paid only by students at Syracuse University's main campus funds this program, this program covers only these students. The following are not eligible for this program: spouses, dependents, students not paying the activity fee, non-students, friends of students, University College Students, Utica College students, law students and persons attending the University in the summer.
The services of this program are not available to anyone before he or she is a registered student at Syracuse University. A student is covered each and every year he or she pays a student activity fee. A senior is only covered until his or her last exam of the spring semester of the year his or her class is due graduate. After the last exam date, or upon loss of student status, the former student is no longer eligible for the services of this unless he or she is being represented by an attorney from this program in a pending court proceeding and it would be prejudicial to the student's case if there were a substitution of attorneys. Representation will not ordinarily be provided unless the attorney expects the case to be completed before graduation.
Geographic Area Covered
With regard to civil and criminal matters, the attorneys will provide advice and consultation on all legal matters. In civil and criminal matters the attorneys will not, however, provide legal representation in cases that originate in courts located outside of Onondaga County.
With regard to traffic violations, the attorneys will only provide legal representation in court for moving violations which involve points being placed on a license and which occur within the City of Syracuse. If the traffic conviction will result in the loss of a student's driver's license, or is a criminal matter, then the attorneys will provide legal representation in all courts that are within Onondaga County.
Controversies Between Students
In any legal matter, problem or controversy where a sponsoring organization, students, or student organizations at Syracuse University have adverse interests, this program will not provide advice or representation to either party except that the attorney will give procedural advice and protect the student's rights until the student has retained private counsel. If a dispute arises between members of this program, the attorney may serve as an informal mediator, if acceptable to all parties. Otherwise the students may be referred to a person, service or agency that may be of help in resolving the dispute.
Court Costs
Eligible students are entitled to advice, consultation, drafting of documents and court appearances. This program is unable to pay court costs and fees involving litigation. These costs and fees, which may be borne by the student, may include payment for subpoenas, summonses, filing fees, printing of transcripts, witness fees and court imposed fines.
- Business, commercial, real estate or income generating matters
- Copyright, patent, incorporation, immigration, bankruptcy or probate matters
- Contested matrimonial matters
- Public Assistance, food stamp and Medicaid matters
- Tax matters that are unrelated to the student's attendance at Syracuse University
- Parking and other no-point traffic violations
- Traffic violations that occur outside of the City of Syracuse where a student's driver's license is not in jeopardy
- Major felonies: Class A, Class B and non-drug Class C felonies, and Federal Court felonies
- Estate planning or drafting of complex wills (attorneys will draft simple wills)
- Students involved in mass political or riotous situations
- Mutual legal problems that affect a student and his or her spouse, parent or child in situations where the student is not the real party in interest.
- Cases in which a private attorney or another program can and will represent the interests of the student without a charge (a contingency fee case) or as part of a liability or insurance policy
- Claims that are unreasonable, frivolous, unethical or without merit.
- The attorneys will not ordinarily represent students in those matters in which the students can adequately represent themselves, such as civil matters that students raise in Small Claims Court. In all cases in which courtroom representation will not be provided, the attorney will counsel students with respect to the preparation and presentation of their cases and the advisability of securing private counsel. In those cases where a student is a plaintiff and the amount being sued for exceeds the monetary limits of Small Claims Court ($3,000.00), the student will need to retain private counsel.
Under the Rules of Professional Conduct, attorneys and staff are obligated to keep client information strictly confidential.
Any complaint or dispute students have about the use of this program should be submitted to the Director of the Program. If the student is still dissatisfied, the complaint or dispute should be submitted to their respective sponsoring organization.
This service is offered to and paid for by a large number of students whose demands on the resources of this program will vary over time. Due to the nature of this program, the attorneys of this program must maintain some degree of control. For this reason it will be within the sole discretion of the attorneys to decline to pursue a case if the attorneys find the case to be without merit or may unduly monopolize the program resources to the disadvantage of other eligible students.
The attorneys can represent only individual students and will not represent campus organizations other than the sponsoring organizations.
The filing of an appeal in a case by the program's attorneys shall be within the sole discretion of the attorneys.
The Student Association and the Graduate Student Organization have a bail fund available for undergraduate and graduate students. If you are arrested and cannot afford to put up your own bail, in most cases they will loan you the necessary money. If you need this service, call the Student Association at 443-2650 or the Graduate Student Organization at 443-5797.