What is the Supreme Court Litigation Clinic?
In the Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, students have the opportunity to gain experience in Supreme Court- and appellate-level litigation through involvement in pending cases.
Students work in teams under the supervision of prominent and experienced attorneys to learn the skills, structure, and methodology of litigating a Supreme Court case. They will have the opportunity to work alongside distinguished and experienced legal minds and assist with petitions for certiorari, briefs in opposition to certiorari, merits briefs, and amicus briefs, and preparation for oral argument in Supreme Court cases.
In the Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, students work full-time in the winter term in Washington, D.C. to facilitate interaction between students, instructors and the litigation process at the Supreme Court. Students are fully involved in intensive work on actual cases before the Court, and also participate in a series of lectures and classroom discussions on Supreme Court practice — including strategy, procedure, brief writing, and oral advocacy. Students are assigned to small teams, each working closely with an instructor to write and file a petition for certiorari, brief in opposition to certiorari, merits brief, amicus brief and/or to prepare for oral argument in a pending case.
How do I apply?
The clinic is offered in the Winter Term. You can learn about clinical credits, pre-requisite requirements, and the clinical application process by reading the course catalog description and exploring the links in this section.
Application Deadline: October 3, 2025
Work Schedule
Students work in-person, full-time over the Winter term.
Students work in teams alongside distinguished and experienced legal minds to assist with petitions for certiorari, briefs in opposition to certiorari, merits briefs, and amicus briefs, and preparation for oral argument in Supreme Court cases.
The clinic and course consist of three major components:
(1) Intensive work on cases before the Court. Students will be assigned to small teams, each working closely with an instructor to write and file a petition for a writ of certiorari, brief in opposition to certiorari, merits brief, amicus brief and/or to prepare for oral argument in a pending case.
(2) Seminars. The instructors will facilitate classroom discussions about Supreme Court practice – including strategy, procedure, brief writing, and oral advocacy.
(3) Events. Students will attend arguments at the Supreme Court, view a moot court, and meet with leading members of the Supreme Court bar, former Supreme Court clerks, and members of the Supreme Court press corps.
The work is quite intensive, precluding students from undertaking any significant non-class-related activities during the winter term. Students should be prepared to work long hours, including potentially on weekends.
Students will be provided transportation to and from Washington, D.C., as well as housing (students should plan to share rooms). Students generally will be responsible for providing themselves meals and transportation within the city.
Meet the Instructors
| Kevin Russell | Lecturer on Law | krussell@law.harvard.edu |
| Deepak Gupta | Lecturer on Law | dgupta@law.harvard.edu |
In the News
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‘Like summer camp for law nerds’
Harvard Law’s Supreme Court Litigation Clinic offers advocacy and energy during January Term By Rachel Reed Via Harvard Law Today There is no morning bugle call. Nor are there group hikes, swimming lessons, or arts and crafts sessions. It is not even the same season. But despite the lack of obvious similarities between the sleepaway
January 26, 2023