Student Organizations

Innocence and Justice Project

By-Laws

Article I

Purpose

The UNM Law Students Innocence and Justice Project (LSIJP) is created under the umbrella of the New Mexico Innocence and Justice Project (NMIJP), a non-profit corporation. The purpose of the LSIJP is to provide pro bono legal assistance under the direction of an attorney to prisoners convicted of serious crimes in New Mexico who are factually innocent of the crime for which they were convicted, and to provide training for students in the investigation, analysis, and legal writing required to win the release of factually innocent prisoners.

Article II

Membership

  1. Membership shall be determined by the payment of annual dues to LSIJP. Members of the UNM Law Students Innocence and Justice Project shall be members of the New Mexico Innocence and Justice Project.
  2. The LSIJP membership may include students from the UNM Law School or the UNM Journalism Department. As agents of the volunteer attorneys, journalism students who become members are bound by the same rules governing confidentiality and privilege as law students.

Article III

Meetings

  1. Board Meetings: Board meetings shall be held at least monthly. Timely notice of the time and place of each meeting shall be posted at least three days in advance. The dates for Board meetings shall alternate with dates for general meetings. The agenda for Board meetings shall be set by the President. Anyone wishing to place an item on the agenda shall notify the President one week prior to the next regular board meeting for the item to be placed on that meeting's agenda.
  2. General Meetings: General meetings shall be held at least four times annually, twice in each of the fall and spring semesters. Timely notice of the time and place of each meeting shall be posted at least three days in advance of each meeting. The agenda for general meetings shall be set by the President. Anyone wishing to place an item on the agenda shall notify the President one week prior to the next regular general meeting for the item to be placed on that meeting's agenda. A quorum to conduct business shall consist of a majority of the membership.
  3. Special Meetings: The President may call special meetings from time to time. Notice of such meetings shall be posted at least three days in advance of the special meeting.
  4. Team Leader Meetings: Team leaders shall meet bi-weekly with the team members for their case.
  5. Voting: A quorum required for conducting business shall consist of a majority of members.

Article IV

Dues

There shall be nominal annual dues required of members. The amount of dues shall be determined by the Board of LSIJP. In the event of financial hardship, dues may be waived for an individual student. A student shall make her or his verbal or written request for a waiver to the President of LSIJP.

Article V

Team Leaders

  1. Method of Appointment: There shall be team leaders chosen by the faculty advisors in the following order of preference: First, a clinic student who was previously a team member; second, a team member who is not a clinic student; third, a clinic student without previous experience as a team member but who has an interest in LSIJP.
  2. Responsibilities:
    1. Where the team leader is the clinic student, the student shall be responsible for:
      1. maintaining the files he or she is charged with,
      2. assigning projects to team members,
      3. scheduling biweekly team meetings with members to discuss progress in the case,
      4. communicating with the inmate on the status of the case,
      5. reporting to the faculty advisors on progress in the case,
      6. and working closely with the volunteer attorney assigned to the case.
    2. Where the team leader is not the clinic student, the clinic student shall be responsible for a., d., e. above; the team leader shall be responsible for the remaining tasks with the assistance of the clinic student.
    3. Team Leaders shall attend NMIJP Board meetings or submit a written report prior to each meeting to the Faculty Advisor of LSIJP on the status of their assigned case. Team leaders shall attend LSIJP Board meetings or submit a written report prior to each meeting to the President of LSIJP on the status of their assigned cases. Team Leaders shall compile a report of projected expenses for the investigation of their assigned case and deliver the report to the Board at the first board meeting of each semester.

Article VI

Faculty Advisors

Faculty advisors shall review student investigations, suggest avenues for further investigation, and approve all correspondence between students and clients of the New Mexico Innocence and Justice Project. When the faculty advisor believes investigations are ready to proceed to the next stage of investigation, he or she shall recommend that the team leader present the client’s case to the Corporation’s Board of Directors to be assigned to a volunteer attorney.

Article VII

Volunteer Attorneys

The volunteer attorney shall review the client's case file and the student memoranda, and either recommend further investigative avenues, recommend to NMIJP Board that the case should go no further, or work with the student to find avenues of relief for the client.

Article VIII

Board

  1. Officers: There shall be a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and three Student Representatives who shall comprise the Board of the LSIJP. One Student Representative shall be chosen from each class of law students.
  2. Removals/Vacancies: Any officer may be removed from office for failing to perform the duties of the office or for unexcused absences from regular meetings if the absences occur more than three times in a semester. Removal must be accomplished by a two-thirds vote of the membership of LSIJP. Vacancies shall be filled by special election and the newly elected officer shall serve out the remaining term.
  3. President Duties: The President of the LSIJP shall preside at all meetings of the membership. The President shall serve as a voting member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation, and report to the Corporation activities or concerns expressed by the members of the LSIJP. The President shall be subject to rules governing attendance of Corporation Board Meetings as set out in the Bylaws of the New Mexico Innocence and Justice Project. The President may appoint committees when needed to advance the purposes of LSIJP.
  4. Vice President Duties: The Vice-President shall assist the President in coordinating meetings. If for any reason there should occur a vacancy in the office of President, the Vice-President shall assume the office of President until the next regular election.
  5. Secretary Duties: The Secretary shall keep accurate records of members' names, addresses, Emails, and phone numbers. The Secretary is also responsible for keeping minutes of each meeting of the Board and general membership.
  6. Treasurer Duties: The Treasurer shall keep accurate records of all incoming and outgoing monies. The Treasurer shall be responsible for attending all workshops required to obtain funding for the LSIJP, and assuring that deadlines and requirements for application for funding are met.
  7. Student Representative Duties: Student Representatives shall attend all NMIJP meetings and report at the next LSIJP General Meeting. The student representatives shall be voting members of the NMIJP Board.

Article IX

Records

The Board shall keep accurate books and records for all transactions and meetings.

Article IX

Election Code

  1. Candidates Requirements and Certification: All candidates shall be LSIJP members in good UNM academic standing according to Law School standards. Candidates not in good standing shall not be placed on the ballot. For a candidate to be certified, he/she must meet all requirements specified in these Bylaws.
  2. Voters: Every LSIJP member may vote in all elections.
  3. Nomination/Election Process: The election for all positions on the Board of the UNM Law Students Innocence and Justice Project shall be held by the first week of February of each year. In November of each year, the Board shall appoint an Election Committee which shall be chaired by the Vice-President of the Board. In the event the Vice President is a candidate for office, the Board shall appoint an officer who is not a candidate to chair the Election Committee. The committee shall consist of LSIJP members and shall follow the Bylaws of the organization. The Election Committee shall determine the precise dates of the election. The nomination/election process shall take seven (7) days. There shall be a two-day election. The Election Committee chair will distribute a notice soliciting nominations to all LSIJP members. Nominations shall be accepted for a period of five days. Nominees shall be certified by the Election Committee as eligible candidates. After nomination, the Election Committee Chair shall provide the general members a ballot with all candidates' names and positions sought. All ballots shall be returned to the ballot box. The ballot box shall close by 5:00 p.m. on the second day of the election. Members shall be notified about the location of the ballot box prior to the election.
  1. Counting Votes: Votes shall be counted by at least three members of the Election Committee within twenty-four hours of the close of the elections. Each candidate has a right to one recount. A recount demand must be made in writing and presented to Election Committee by 6:00 p.m. on the day the results are announced.
  2. Winning: The winning candidate must receive a plurality, an excess of the votes cast for one candidate over those cast for any other, and the person who receives the greatest number of votes has a plurality.
  3. Results: The Election Committee shall announce the results within twenty-four (24) hours to the general members. The new officers shall assume their responsibilities at 12:00 p.m. (noon) the day after the announcements of the Election Committee.
  4. Tie: In case of a tie, a run-off election shall be held under the Election Code with those tied with the most votes placed on the second ballot. The run-off election shall follow the same rules as the election process set out in Section C of these Bylaws.
  5. Special Elections: The category of Special Elections shall include:
    1. Votes to remove an officer of the LSIJP.
    2. Elections to fill a vacant elected position regardless of reason for vacancy.
    3. Or any other election determined by the Board.

Election provisions for any special election shall be promulgated by a majority vote of the LSIJP Board. The Board shall provide reasonable notice and opportunity to allow a fair resolution of any issue requiring a special election. The Election Code shall be used as a general guideline in Special Elections. All provisions that apply to challenge and recounts shall apply to Special Elections.

Article X

Amendments

These Bylaws may be amended by proposing such amendment for a vote of the membership at a regular meeting in which a quorum is present. The amendment shall be deemed passed if voted for by a two-thirds majority.

Adopted 10/24/01