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When there’s a problem with low-income housing in Durham, North Carolina, there’s a good chance the Civil Justice Clinic will get involved. Housing has been the clinic’s signature issue for more than a decade, and it’s why the clinic often gets a call when a tenant is facing eviction or habitability concerns in a rental unit.

“We are probably the most external Durham-facing clinic that Duke offers,” said Clinic Director Jesse Hamilton McCoy II. “Because people have been able to rely on us through bad times, whether we're dealing with the ongoing eviction crisis or during COVID when evictions were spiking, it’s given us the moniker of being about housing. And we don't run from it. We're using Duke resources to level the playing field for tenants who otherwise don't have the ability to fight back." 

The clinic’s visibility is due in large part to McCoy’s longstanding ties to the community. A Durham native, he began his law career as a solo practitioner handling a range of matters from criminal defense to personal injury, then worked as a Legal Aid of North Carolina (LANC) attorney focused solely on housing issues. McCoy joined the Civil Justice Clinic as supervising attorney in 2017, forging relationships with community organizations such as Reinvestment Partners, Housing for New Hope, and Durham Congregations in Action.

He played a major role in launching the pilot of the Durham Eviction Diversion Program, administered by LANC, that has become a model for programs in other cities and spoke at a White House event honoring efforts like the pop-up eviction advice clinic students operated at for those facing eviction during the COVID-19 pandemic. The clinic also filed a class action complaint, with law firm Maginnis Howard, against the owner of JFK Towers on behalf of tenants who reached out over unsafe conditions at the Durham affordable housing complex. McCoy became director of the clinic in July 2024.

Students handle at least one housing case during the semester, and the immediacy of the problems many low-income Durham residents face, such as pest infestations, water leaks, and non-functional heating units, highlights systemic inequities in the housing system and the law, said Molly Pines JD ’26, who recently argued and won a discovery motion hearing in a case involving toxic mold in a rental unit.

“Our clients' day-to-day lives look very different than our lives, and their court case is usually just one of many things they need to worry about taking care of that day,” Pines said. 

“My enthusiasm for legal advocacy has grown, but I've also developed a deeper understanding of how frustrating, intimidating, and confusing a court proceeding can be for someone facing housing problems. A lawyer's job isn't just to figure out how to fix those problems. It's also to acknowledge and validate clients' experiences as they deal with those problems.”

Fighting to help low-income workers have a defense

Another core legal area for the clinic is defending unlicensed health care workers accused of misconduct. Most make little money in lower-tier positions and, if they lose, face a listing on the state’s Health Care Personnel Registry that makes it difficult to find future employment.

“Our defense was essential because our client otherwise would not have been able to afford any legal counsel,” said Yumu Chen JD/LLM ’26, who with Jingyao Shan JD ’26 is defending a client. After a full-day trial in which they gave opening and closing statements and performed direct examination and cross examination of witnesses, Chen and Shan were successful in advancing their case.   

“I think that’s thanks to our preparation. We had training in each step of a state litigation case,” Chen said. “But it’s also because of the close mentoring and guidance from Professor McCoy. I started out quite nervous, but because of our preparation, things really started to shape up well and then that anxiety went away.”

For John McDaniel JD ’25, who argued similar cases, working with clients facing high-stakes decisions with dire consequences sparked empathy and a desire to continue pro bono work as he begins his career. The work, he said, could feel “daunting and sometimes hopeless.” But it also reminded him of his privilege and responsibility as a lawyer.

“The clinic really helped me learn about the obstacles the system of justice presents to people. I can't imagine how anyone would be able to navigate it without any kind of legal education,” McDaniel said.

“But to represent people in the community — to slow down that process and give them even a moment to breathe — has been incredibly rewarding. And it's really taught me how much, as a lawyer, I care. At the end of the day, as lawyers, our job is to help protect people in the communities we serve. And the clinic’s been a great reminder of that.”