There are few areas of the law where a lawyer can end their day by stating: "I helped save someone’s life today". We do that every day at the Family Law Center.
Since its inception in 2022, the Family Law Center at Seattle University School of Law has advanced its dual mission of providing critical legal services to survivors of domestic violence and delivering hands-on, experiential legal education to our students. Through our clinics, practicums, and collaborative initiatives, we have continued to expand our reach to underserved communities across Washington State.
In the 2025-26 academic year, our students in our practicums and our student volunteer interns assisted 119 clients, offering support in domestic violence protection orders, family law matters, and related legal needs. These efforts not only provided meaningful assistance to individuals navigating complex and often traumatic circumstances but also equipped our students with the practical skills necessary for effective and compassionate advocacy.
Through our community partnerships, we have provided significant resources — known as wrap around services — to survivors of domestic violence. Many pressing issues arise when a survivor engages our legal services for assistance in leaving an abusive relationship: housing, clothing, hygiene items, and transportation. Thanks to our collaboration with Reclaiming our Greatness, we are able to provide these services.
Finally, not only do we provide legal advocacy and education, we conduct cutting edge research. As we wrap up our three-year grant as a sub awardee from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we look forward to releasing our results with the research team on racialized experiences of accessing an Order to Surrender Weapons as part of a Domestic Violence Protection Order. Scroll further down the page to see examples of our latest scholarship.
This study