Legal aid clinic moves to Redwood City 

The clinic, founded in 2003, once operated off-campus in East Palo Alto until five years ago, when the attorneys were evicted to make way for an incoming development — which still has yet to be developed. 

Since, the clinic has bounced around until it found its new home at 999 Main St. The grand opening was celebrated Wednesday evening, when guests could visit the offices where aspiring attorneys meet with clients just a few blocks away from the county courthouse. 

“This really feels like our forever home,” Clinic Director Juliet Brodie said. 

The clinic’s mission is to “provide exceptionally high-quality free legal services to those who live in the neighborhoods and region that surrounds Stanford,” on the university’s dime, Brodie said. 

The university’s funding liberates the attorneys and students to “lawyer the heck out of every single case and teach our students to teach our clients what it really means to have a lawyer, to have a champion, full ride, on your side,” Brodie said.  

A major focus of the clinic is offering full-scale legal representation for those facing eviction in San Mateo County. While tenants in need may have legal defenses, without representation it is often difficult to assert them, Brodie said, especially because eviction cases move fast. 

The clinic is not a high-volume operation — There are no annual reports of high numbers of clients or cases argued, but that’s not the point, Brodie said. 

“We are here to train law students and provide incredibly high-quality services on a sort of slow burn, low-volume model,” Brodie said. 

This requires the clinic to work closely with and rely upon community partners who operate high-volume businesses, such as the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County. 

“This is high-cost work, this is resource intensive work,” Brodie said. “Stanford University and Stanford Law School have chosen to continue to invest in brick and mortar in the community at a time when resources are thin, hard choices have to be made.” 

George Triantis, dean of the Stanford Law School, said the community-based clinic helps students learn that “being an effective lawyer is not just about appearing in court.” 

“The strength of the Community Law Clinic is not the space, but the space helps,” Triantis said.