Hutchens Business Law Clinic officially launches in downtown Raleigh

RALEIGH- Campbell Law School officially launched the Hutchens Business Law Clinicwith a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony on Aug. 7 at Raleigh Founded North.

Thanks to a very generous donation from the Hutchens Law Firm in Fayetteville, Campbell Law has revived its Business Law Clinic this fall semester under the direction of Benji Jones, who initially started the Business Law Clinic with her former partner and their law firm Innovate Capital in 2019.

The Hutchens Business Law Clinic - in partnership with incubator Raleigh Founded- works with clients across the area's entrepreneurial ecosystem to help them solve real-world business and legal problems. The clinic is located at 509 West North St. in downtown Raleigh.

"So I just started my 13th year as Dean here at this law school," Leonard explained. "One of my goals when I became Dean was to expand the experiential opportunities for our students. I do believe clinics are a remarkable way to teach the first-hand skills they need after they leave law school and go out and practice. We had one clinic when I started, our legendary Restorative Justice Clinic, led by Jon Powell '98. But I'm delighted to announce that we will start school with seven distinct, standalone clinics spread all over the city."

Leonard added he met with alumni in the Hutchens firm and discovered they wanted to do something special for founder Terry Hutchens' upcoming retirement and the naming of the clinic idea was born.

Campbell Law alumnus Scott Flowers '03is a managing partner at Hutchens Law.

"When I first met Terry, I was working as a prosecutor, and I had an interest in doing business law, business litigation and I asked people around the courthouse, you know, who's the guy in town for that? And they told me, Terry Hutchens. And so, you know, this is what Terry's known for," Flowers explained. "So it's just a great fit. And so we're really excited to do something in Terry's honor, and also to support this great law school. My daughter is a rising 2L. So, you know, I put my money where my mouth is when it comes to Campbell. Three of the five of us on the executive committee are Campbell Law grads and we recruit heavily out of Campbell Law school."

Assistant Dean of Experiential Learning Richard Waugaman III '09, '12 told the crowd of 50 or so gathered for the ceremony that in addition to business law, the law school's seven operational clinics cover areas for bankruptcy law, restorative justice, family law, education law, veterans legal issues and community law including evictions and driver's license restoration.

"We are giving students the opportunity to come in and trade a textbook for a case file," Waugaman explained. "To trade the mythological reasonable person whom I've never yet interacted with in family law for a real person, a real person with issues that need addressed, wrongs that need redress, opportunities that need taken advantage of and students are getting the opportunity to do just that prior to graduation, prior to the bar exam, to see what the practice of law really is."

Clinics also provide an opportunity for students to get their hands on real issues, to start to make a difference, even before they have their law license, Waugaman continued. "It's also an opportunity to help those in the community that are at the most disadvantaged, the most in need, to fill a gap that exists in our community and to make things better and smoother for the court system and for all of us as a whole."

Jones has more than 20 years of experience as a corporate transactional attorney, representing both public and private companies on a wide range of legal matters. Her goal for the clinic is to teach and encourage confidence for both her clients and the students.

"I view my job as having two constituencies - students and clients," she said. "My students, who come into the program knowing pretty much nothing about how to practice law, I want them to leave knowing what they know and don't know and having the confidence to say I don't know that, so I can either figure it out or we can find someone who knows how to help you.

"And then for my clients, it's to learn how to run their business, to make it start up appropriately. Most startups or small business people don't care about this stuff. They really don't. They just want to run their business. But we as legal professionals want them to get on the right track and stay on the right track, and if we can get them down the track with the right groundwork, that's the goal."

There are typically four students in the clinic and each student works with three to four clients, meaning 12 to 14 clients are helped each semester, according to Jones.

The startup counsel program helps bridge classroom learning and the hands-on practicing of law with Campbell Law students weighing on client legal issues such as business entity formation, employee/contractor documentation, equity compensation plans and awards, commercial agreements such as NDAs and vendor agreements as well as other operational topics.

"By the end of the semester, I really want my students to be able to not only identify the problems or the issues that we have to solve, but to come up with an active plan of this is how I think we should solve these things, or this is how maybe we should … this makes for an attorney that is ready to hit the ground running for whoever they're working for, another law firm, another company or for themselves, to be able to be self sufficient and be confident to practice in transactional law."

Kelly Chauvin Kramarenko '24, a financial investigator for the N.C. Secretary of State, worked in the clinic her third year of law school.

"I'm a proud graduate of Campbell Law," she told the group. ""I came into Campbell Law as a second career and I have embraced the opportunities. Less than a year in, I already feel like I've made it because I am talking to Benji Jones in a professional capacity. One of the things that makes this clinic incredible is the power of Benji as a professional, her knowledge, her excellence and the energy that she brings every day, to every class, to every client meeting. To get to watch her in action and be able to pattern my own legal behavior after how she works is such a gift."

Kramarenko continued, "It's such an incredible educational moment to see how she can take all of this corporate legalese and distill it down instantly to something that is intelligible and actionable. This clinic and the selectivity and the size of it really allows the students to get hands-on experience. I was able to work with clients, draft contracts, do in-depth, statutory analysis through multiple different states, part of which got me my current position. So this experience has really launched me into this amazing career, and I really want to take this time to thank Dean Leonard…to thank Benji Jones, to thank the staff at Campbell that make all of these opportunities possible for the law students."

The clinic operates on a semester-based system (generally mid-August through late November and early January through late April). The clinic is dark during summer and vacation months. Applications may not be immediately processed.

To learn more or to submit an application, visit this link or use the QR code below.

ABOUT CAMPBELL LAW SCHOOL

Since its founding in 1976, Campbell Law has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion, and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. Among its accolades, the school has been recognized by the American Bar Association (ABA) as having the nation's top Professionalism Program and by the American Academy of Trial Lawyers for having the nation's best Trial Advocacy Program. Campbell Law boasts more than 5,000 alumni, who make their home in nearly all 50 states and beyond. In 2026, Campbell Law will celebrate 50 years of graduating legal leaders and 17 years of being located in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina's Capital City.

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