Advocacy Certificate Harrisburg

3-Year Program (Full Time) 4-Year Program (Part-time)

Certificate Programs

JD Admissions

Advocacy Certificate (Harrisburg)

The advocacy certificate provides students with course work and hands-on learning opportunities in litigation (civil, criminal and administrative) and dispute resolution. The program is designed to enhance the placement opportunities in the region’s district attorney and public defender offices, public agencies that conduct administrative hearings and private law firms.

Required Courses

All students must take:

ITAP (Intensive Trial Advocacy Program) or Trial Methods and
Advanced Trial Methods

Students must additionally take for a grade (pass/fail courses do not qualify) one class from each of the two lists below. Students should be aware of course prerequisites so should plan on taking Evidence, Professional Responsibility and Criminal Procedure as early as possible but no later than by the end of the second year for Regular Division students and by the end of the fifth semester for Extended Division students.

At least one of the following courses

Pre-trial Methods
Pennsylvania Civil Practice
Legal Methods III – Appellate Advocacy
Legal Methods III – Specialization (in civil, criminal, or administrative litigation)*
Negotiations
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Mediation

* Course must be approved by Advocacy Program Director as satisfying the program requirement

AND
At least one of the following courses

Advanced Criminal Procedure
Advanced Evidence
Law and Policy of Sentencing and Corrections

Additional courses may be added to the above menus at the discretion of the Director.

Experiential Requirement
Students must complete the experiential requirement by participating as a trial attorney in an evidentiary hearing through an approved clinical or externship program and observe and submit a report to the program director on a complete trial.

Writing Requirement
To satisfy the program’s writing requirement, students must prepare a trial brief. This may be satisfied in conjunction with an advocacy course (such as Advanced Trial Methods) or the fulfillment of the experiential requirement. The brief must be approved by the program director.

Additional Requirements
In addition to successful completion of the course, experiential and writing requirements, students must earn a B- or better in all certificate courses and maintain an overall GPA of 2.8 or higher.

Harrisburg Campus:
3800 Vartan Way
P.O. Box 69380
Harrisburg, PA 17106-9380
CAMPUS PHONE NUMBERS:
ADMISSIONS: 717.541.3903
MAIN: 717.541.3900
LIBRARY: 717.541.3933
Harrisburg Directions

Delaware Campus:
4601 Concord Pike
P.O. Box 7474
Wilmington, DE 19803
CAMPUS PHONE NUMBERS:
ADMISSIONS 302.477.2703
MAIN: 302.477.2100
LIBRARY: 302.477.2244
Delaware Directions

Two great campuses.
Countless paths to success.

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