Georgia State 3Ls Find Experience Through Research Pool Aimed at Solos, Small Firms
Solo and small-firm lawyers in need of inexpensive and skilled legal research in a pinch can now turn to Georgia State College of Law’s third-year law students and recent graduates thanks to a new service by GSU career services. The program, Short-term Research Assistance Pool (SHARP), matches lawyers with vetted candidates to help research case law, draft complaints and write letters on a matter-by-matter basis, according to the Fulton County Daily Report.
The arrangement offers students valuable legal experience and provides a cost-sensitive alternative to lawyers that don’t possess the resources of a full-time associate or paralegal. Candidates are screened by GSU through résumé checks and professor recommendations and projects are assigned according to the participants’ number in a pool.
GSU, which launched the program this spring, sent postcards to small firms in metro Atlanta and 13 lawyers have used the service so far, Vickie M. Brown, GSU Law’s director of career services told the Fulton Country Daily Report. As positive interest in the program grows, Brown hopes it will evolve into long-term job opportunities as well.
