Third-year student Chris Eliou is discovering in law school that his passion for the law lies in representing criminal defendants. That interest was accelerated over the summer through his clerkship with the Dakota County Public Defender’s Office.
“I appreciated the opportunity to help clients with their problems,” he said.
Under the supervision of the office’s attorneys, Eliou worked directly with individuals who were in custody and seeking release, and those who were accused of violating their probation. He conducted client interviews, argued before judges, negotiated with prosecutors and even resolved a small number of cases.
“Every day when I talked to clients it gave me the opportunity to improve my communication and research skills,” Eliou said. “I also enjoyed the courtroom setting, having the opportunity to persuade a judge on my position and seeing success when my client got a favorable outcome.”
He appreciated that the attorneys and staff in the public defender’s office were approachable and willing to take the time to teach and mentor him about the work.
“I have learned a lot from my time with all of them,” he said. “They collectively taught me about procedural and statutory rules, gave me advice on how to better communicate with clients and provided insight on how a judge would likely rule on cases.”
The guidance of the attorneys was particularly helpful as Eliou learned and adjusted to the daily schedule of the court, especially on busy days, when he was more limited in the attention he could give clients.
“There were days when there were a lot of cases on the calendar and many people applied for the services of a public defender,” he said. “On those days there was a lot of information to process in a short amount of time and we had to limit our conversations with clients.”
Eliou says this was a frustrating aspect of the job.
“It was disheartening for some clients who wanted their questions answered and/or vent their concerns,” he said. “One of the biggest reasons for clients to be unsatisfied with their representation is due to limited communication.”
Eliou earned credit for his clerkship at the Dakota County Public Defender’s Office as part of St. Thomas Law’s Misdemeanor Defense Legal Externship Program, which offers students the opportunity to gain relevant professional experience.
Once a student completes their semester or summer externship, they can pursue an advanced externship in order to continue their placement and build their skills, which is something Eliou has decided to do.
“In addition to what I did this summer, I help new clerks either by training them on what we do in our day-to-day or by giving advice/tips on how to succeed,” he said. “I also had the opportunity to work with an attorney on a research project.”
