Legal Help
Talk with our attorney, William "Zac" Mundy, about your legal issue. He provides legal advice and information that covers an extensive list of the legal issues typically faced by graduate students. Before you request an appointment at the bottom of this page, please review the following details about this service.
Testimonial: "I am really grateful for the services of Grad Legal Aid. William was so helpful in navigating my case! His legal assistance truly eased the stress of my housing situation and the financial burden I was under. I really appreciate knowing that if I have any further troubles with my landlord, that I can come back to William/GLAO. Thank you all!"
Here's what you need to know before you request an appointment
- Attention Undergraduate Students: Please contact Undergraduate Student Legal Aid for assistance.
- Eligibility: Graduate students who are registered at the University of Maryland College Park are eligible for our services.
- Consultations are conducted via phone, email, or Zoom. If you request a Zoom appointment, we will send you the link a few minutes before your scheduled time.
- Confidentiality: Your discussions with our attorney and other staff are protected by attorney/client privilege. We will not discuss your case with your parents, friends, spouses, or the University of Maryland without your written consent.
- Out of Area Cases: Our attorney is licensed to practice law in Maryland and the District of Columbia. As such, he is unable to provide specific legal advice for matters that occurred outside of Maryland or DC. However, we will attempt to provide legal resources or information to help you with your situation.
- Conflict of Interest: Grad Legal Aid is funded by a portion of the graduate student activities fee. As such, all registered full-time graduate students are potential clients of our office. In the event that more than one student is involved in a case and other students' interests are not completely aligned, we will not represent any of the students due to the conflict of these interests. In other words, we will not represent one student if representation could potentially have an adverse effect on another student.
- Mediation: Our attorney can serve as a mediator between graduate students who are involved in a dispute. We require that all involved parties provide written consent. Contact us for more information.
- UMD Cases: Finally, we do not assist students in cases against the University of Maryland College Park, as that represents a conflict of interest between our office and the University.
Legal matters we can address:
- Consumer & Credit Disputes
- Family Law / Divorce / Simple Separations / Name Changes
- Health Insurance / Health Care Issues
- Power of Attorney / Advance Medical Directives
- Lease Review: complete this form
- Landlord-Tenant Disputes - We will assist students who are tenants; however, students who are landlords cannot be assisted as noted below
- Maryland Driver's License: Recording || Slides
- Immigration issues are addressed by our immigration attorney
Excluded issues include but are not limited to the following examples:
- We do not provide representation in a court of law
- We do not represent/advise students against the university.
- We do not advise one student directly against another student as this is a conflict of interest; however, we do offer mediation services for all involved parties.
- We do not provide legal advice in specialized areas of law. We will help you evaluate your situation and provide referrals to other resources that may be able to assist you.
- Campus grievance procedures - visit the Ombuds Office for assistance
- Claims against or adverse to the University of Maryland - visit the Ombuds Office for assistance
- Credit counseling & bankruptcy
- Representation in negotiations, arbitration, or court
- Felony criminal charges
- Income-producing activities, including grad students who are landlords
- Intellectual property - visit the Maryland Intellectual Property Legal Resource Center
- Real estate transactions
- Tax or income tax issues - click here for Terp Tax, a free tax service
- Emergency legal services - see our Resources page
- Cases outside the state of Maryland and the District of Columbia: Our attorney is barred in the State of Maryland and the District of Columbia. For out-of-state cases, general information may be provided.
Not sure if we can help you? Email us at glao@umd.edu with a brief description of your concern. We will either suggest that you request an appointment or we will make a referral to another resource that may be able to help you.
Want to meet with the attorney?
Click below and complete the form.
