Texas Law Expunction Project – Petition Drafting and Exit Appointments

At a group work session, students will use court records and information provided at expunction intake clinics to draft petitions and orders for expunction or nondisclosure of criminal records. Students will conduct additional research on county records as needed. After the work session, students will meet with petitioners over Zoom to finalize petitions to expunge criminal records or obtain orders of nondisclosure of criminal records, help prepare affidavits seeking waiver of filing fees, and prepare applicants for the process of filing and obtaining a hearing on their petitions.

Organization

Texas Law Expunction Project

The Expunction Project is an internal project of the Richard and Ginni Mithoff Pro Bono Program. Expunging records allows people to legally deny offenses and erases records from criminal histories, mitigating future harm stemming from arrests that do not result in a criminal conviction. Orders of nondisclosure direct police departments and other agencies not to disclose criminal records on background checks, and allow a person to not disclose offenses on applications for housing or employment.

Project Details

Project Date

Thursday, November 5

Project Time
6pm-8:30pm (Work Session)
Approximate hours of work requested
4 hours, including training; ; exit appointments will be scheduled individually with applicants based on applicant and volunteer availability
Training
Volunteers will be trained in the first 30 minutes of the work session; Pro Bono Scholars will be available to provide additional assistance during for office hours on Mondays from 5pm-6pm and on Fridays from 3pm-4pm until Friday, December 4th (excluding Thanksgiving week)
Skills used
Document preparation/review; legal writing and research; client communication and support; legal records review; government communication and records collection; financial advocacy; client interviewing and instruction
Project location
Virtual
Number of student volunteers requested
20
Class year preference
1L, 2L, 3L, LLM
To Apply
Register at https://expworkf20.eventbrite.com