A program to alleviate legal deserts throughout New Mexico will expose UNM law students to hands-on legal experience by working in state district courts this summer.
The summer extern program will place two externs in the 11th Judicial District, one in San Juan County and one in McKinley County, according to a news release from the Administrative Offices of the Courts.
The program is a component of the New Mexico Rural Justice Initiative, which was established in September 2022, after the New Mexico Supreme Court convened a committee of rural judges, attorneys and community leaders to address legal deserts in New Mexico.
“Legal deserts exist throughout New Mexico because there are few attorneys available to help people in many counties,” 9th Judicial District Chief Judge Donna Mowrer said.
New Mexico has been in a crisis when it comes to practicing lawyers in the state. Most lawyers practice in Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Santa Fe, leaving two-thirds of New Mexico’s counties with fewer than one lawyer for each 1,000 residents, according to the courts.
There are four counties in New Mexico with no practicing attorneys.
“The gap in access to justice can result in serious real-life consequences for New Mexicans struggling to deal with legal disputes such as child support and custody, consumer debt lawsuits, or the potential loss of housing,” said Mowrer, who led the committee.
Its recommendations included three components meant to strengthen legal services in New Mexico’s rural communities. Those are the Rural Judicial Externship, the Rural Practice Externships and the Rural Practice Incubators.
The externs, who are second- and third-year law students, will perform legal research and writing and observe court proceedings during the 10-week program. Mentor judges also will help externs foster connections to local legal and civic leaders.
“The goal is to expose law students to communities where they can build professional relationships that make them want to return to rural New Mexico to practice law after their graduation and serve the people of our state,” said Chief Justice Julie J. Vargas.
The externs will begin their assignments later this month and will receive compensation plus a $5,000 stipend when they successfully complete the program. They will also be eligible for tuition reimbursement up to $1,800 and a housing stipend up to $4,000.
In addition to the two externs in the 11th Judicial District, there will be two placed in the 4th, 7th, 8th and 9th districts. There will be one extern each in the 6th and 12th judicial districts.
The New Mexico State Legislature provided funding for the Rural Justice Initiative in 2023 through an appropriation, establishing judicial law clerk positions for law school graduates to work with judges in rural areas, and in 2024 expanded the program to include law students, according to the news release.