A new clinic at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law will provide support and protection for victims of domestic violence starting next semester.
The Halle Center for Family Justice, which was funded by two $1 million grants from NextCare Urgent Care and the Bruce T. Halle Family Foundation, will provide free, confidential care and a legal clinic for victims.
Paul Schiff Berman, dean of the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, said the program is set to begin in the fall.
“By January, if not before, we will begin representation of clients,” he said. “There are no law schools that have as many clinical programs as we do. [This] makes this center an important national program.”
Sarah M. Buel, clinical professor at the University of Texas, was chosen to be the new center’s director because of her 32 years of working with battered women, abused children and juveniles within the legal system.
“I am very excited about coming [to ASU],” she said. “It’s an amazing proposal.”
Laurel Stoimenoff, president of NextCare Urgent Care, commended ASU for its involvement in the issue. “This is a revolutionary program that’s starting up where others are retreating,” she said.
The program is still in its infancy, she said.
“The concept is so new,” Stoimenoff said. “We started talking to the law school in November.”
NextCare has always been involved in domestic violence cases, she said.
Every 12 minutes in Arizona, a domestic violence victim calls the Department of Economic Security to request an emergency shelter, information or referral, according to information from the NextCare Urgent Care Center.
“We started offering free medical care for victims so there would be no paper trail leading back to them,” she said. The best way to work is collaboratively, Stoimenoff said.
“We have to work together to get [victims] out of the abusive situation,” she said.
The law school could provide information on restraining orders, and students from the nursing school could provide care, Stoimenoff said.
“To the women of ASU, abuse at any level is unacceptable,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be physical. Domestic violence is a broadening definition, more people are willing to come forward.”
The center will also focus on human trafficking, and the Justice Bus program where law students will travel the state to give pro-bono legal advice.
Reach the reporter at mmbarke1@asu.edu
