LAIP students on Bascom Hill
Who is served by LAIP?
LAIP is a Law School educational program with limited resources. Therefore, it has been necessary to set clear limits on the scope of the project's assistance.
LAIP provides assistance to inmates who are incarcerated at maximum- or medium-security institutions in the Wisconsin State Prison System. LAIP also provides assistance to federal inmates incarcerated at FCI-Oxford and Oxford Prison Camp.
LAIP does NOT provide assistance to individuals in the following situations:
- inmates in minimum-security institutions in the Wisconsin Prison System;
- inmates in county jails in Wisconsin;
- patients in mental health centers in Wisconsin, including the Wisconsin Resource Center;
- inmates in prisons or jails outside of Wisconsin;
- individuals on probation or parole supervision; or
- any individuals who are not incarcerated.
How does an inmate contact LAIP for assistance?
LAIP conducts regular screening interviews at all maximum- and medium-security institutions in the Wisconsin Prison System, and also at FCI-Oxford.
An inmate who wants assistance from LAIP should not write to LAIP or call LAIP. Rather, the inmate should sign up for an "LAIP interview" at the institution. Depending on the institution, the inmate should contact the social services department or program services department to sign up for the interview.
At the screening interview, the inmate will explain his or her concern(s) to an LAIP representative. If the representative believes that the concern is appropriate for referral to LAIP for more in-depth student assistance, the inmate's name will be placed on a wait list. Due to the large size of the wait lists and the limited availability of law students, it can take up to a year for an inmate who has been referred to LAIP to meet with a law student.
For inmates in the Wisconsin Prison System, LAIP prioritizes student assistance at medium-security institutions. Therefore, depending on the nature of their legal concerns, inmates in state maximum-security prisons may have to wait until they are transferred to medium-security institutions in order to receive LAIP student assistance. However, these inmates will have the benefit of an "advice only" interview provided by LAIP clinical faculty.