The Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic is an innovative program that pairs inventors, entrepreneurs, and emerging companies with teams of ASU Law students. There are two primary objectives for the program. First, the clinic provides clients with legal services often unavailable to startups and small businesses. These services will help clients to operate with a stronger legal foundation as they grow and thrive. Second, the clinic will pro future lawyers with “real world” transactional practice experience. These students will be better prepared for their legal careers, post-graduation.
Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic
What students do:
Teams of two to three ASU Law students undertake a wide array of legal services that help early-stage ventures navigate the mistakes and pitfalls often made when launching and growing companies. These services may include a choice of entity advising, business entity formation, contract drafting and review, intellectual property advising, employment law advising, and/or commercial lease review. Teams are guided through the semester by Director Eric Menkhus, Clinical Professor at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law. Additional guidance is provided by Raees Mohamed of RM Warner Law and Jon Coury of Hool Coury Law.
Student teams will work with clients in two project rounds per semester, the first starting (Fall/Spring) in mid-August/January and the second starting in mid-October/March. The student teams will handle all aspects of the engagement – initial client interview, engagement agreement execution, mid-project communication, work product delivery and engagement wrap-up activities.
Course information
The Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic is a one-semester course with an opportunity for a limited number of students to return (with Director's approval).
- Credits: six credits (two graded and four pass/fail)
- Pre- or Co-Requisite(s): Evidence, Civil Procedure, Criminal Law and Professional Responsibility
Time commitment
Students are expected to spend a minimum of 270 hours in the Clinic during the semester and will be asked to track their time in the Clinic’s case management software system.
Fall or Spring Semester – approximately 20 hours per week
- 16 hours per week on client-focused projects
- Four hours per week on seminar course attendance and requirements
Student application deadlines
Students may apply via Atlas during the application period listed below.
**IMPORTANT!* - Externships and Clinics – Students who have applied for an externship or clinic and been accepted may decline upon offer without consequence. However, once a student has accepted an externship or clinic, any student who drops the externship or clinic without prior approval by the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs will be subject to the 12-month ban.
Fill out the Entrepreneurship and Small Business prospective client questionnaire
Application for prospective clients
Other questions and/or feedback, please reach out to Clinic Director Eric Menkhus at eric.menkhus@asu.edu or (480) 727-8856.
Our People
Eric Menkhus Director, Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic, Clinical Professor
Raees Mohamed Faculty Associate, Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic
Jonathan Coury Faculty Associate, Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic