The John Marshall law School Patent Clinic.

The John Marshall Law School's Patent Clinic provides free pro bono legal services for inventors that cannot afford a patent attorney and cannot otherwise obtain funding from investors to begin protecting their idea by assisting an inventor in filing a patent application. 

The Patent Clinic is geared to providing pro bono legal services for filing a patent application.  Often there are other actions that need to be taken by the applicant after the initial filing and the Patent Clinic has often helped its inventors with such actions, but cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so in any particular instance. 

There are two classes (or Patent Clinics) at the John Marshall Law School that form the entire Patent Clinic program.  In the first level class (the Beginning Patent Clinic), all of the students work on the same project.  In other words, each of the students draft their own version of a patent application for the same invention.  Thus far, the instructor for this first level class ends up writing his own unique version of the patent application and files that one.  Because of this, the instructor usually picks a client that he is currently working with and gives him a discount on the cost.  In the second level class (the Advanced Patent Clinic), each of the students work on a separate patent application.  Each student's work is reviewed and commented upon, revised by the students, reviewed by the inventor, and then filed by the student once the inventor has accepted the work. 

At least in certain instances, the inventors using the Patent Clinic may need to seek outside representation some time after the filing of the patent application.  For example, after a patent application has been filed, an Office Action or other requirements may need to be acted upon during a time period (such as summer breaks) where insufficient numbers of students are available to assist with taking action.  In these instances, the inventor may be referred to a local practitioner who can take care of the matter at the inventor's expense.  If the inventor does not have sufficient funds to have a local practitioner take care of the matter, the Law School may (in its sole discretion) undertake to find someone who might assist the inventor with a required action or assist in the funding of the same, but cannot guarantee that it will be able to find such person for the inventor.

History of the Patent Clinic 
Information for the Inventor
Information for Students at the John Marshall Law School