James “Jimmy” Mitchell has joined the HeLP Legal Services Clinic as a supervising attorney and brings a wealth of legal practice and research experience to his new role. Most recently, he was employed as an associate with Nall & Miller LLP. He defended both national and local corporations in governmental liability, constitutional law, product liability, and insurance and business litigation.
Prior to working with Nall & Miller, Mitchell was a federal staff attorney with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. There he assisted Court of Appeals judges in the disposition of civil and criminal cases and conducted extensive research around federal and state legal issues.
While at the University of Notre Dame Law School, Mitchell volunteered for CASA, an organization that appoints trained volunteers to advocate in juvenile court proceedings for the best interests of children who have suffered abuse or neglect. Mitchell’s experience with CASA instilled in him a passion to advocate on behalf of children.
“Jimmy excelled in law school and coupled with his experience, he is particularly well suited to teach and mentor our students,” said Sylvia Caley (M.B.A ’86; J.D. ’89), director of HeLP and co-director of the clinic. “We are thrilled that he has joined the HeLP Clinic as clinical supervising attorney.”
“I was excited to jump right in this summer,” said Mitchell. “With student Blinn Combs (J.D. ’17), we already have successfully appealed a termination of disability benefits for a child with serious health conditions.”
Working with the clinic appealed to Mitchell from multiple angles: he is interested in teaching, supervising students, legal practice and research. “I cannot imagine a better opportunity to teach students while also providing essential legal services to the community,” he said.