Appellate litigator Howard J. Bashman shares his experience working with the University of Virginia's Supreme Court Litigation Clinic in a column for Law.com...

I recently had the opportunity to consult with several law school U.S. Supreme Court clinics on behalf of a pro bono client of mine who had received an unfavorable ruling from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in a case involving an issue that had a reasonable prospect of U.S. Supreme Court review.[...]

The UVA clinic drafted very persuasive papers to be filed in the case, and I was provided with the proposed filings sufficiently in advance of the deadlines to allow me to offer meaningful substantive comments and suggestions. The case presented the U.S. Supreme Court with a 13 to 12 division among state courts of last resort over whether a grandparent had to prove harm or potential harm to the child before a court could order grandparent visitation over the objection of a fit parent.

The Supreme Court eventually denied certiorari on Bashman's case and never actually heard the appeal.

[Law.com] A User's Guide to Law School Supreme Court Clinics