The Florida State University College of Law is renowned for offering students practical work experiences, helping shape many of the country’s top legal professionals. Alexis Fulton, who recently earned her juris doctorate from FSU Law, exemplifies this success.
While working toward her law degree at FSU from 2022-25, Fulton combined passion with advocacy as she sought to find her career ambitions at FSU’s Public Interest Law Center. The opportunity led her to the Claude Pepper Elder Law Clinic – an interdisciplinary program dedicated to strengthening the well-being and resilience of low-income older adults through legal advocacy and community education.
With the help of Claude Pepper Elder Law Clinic Director Rima Nathan, Fulton launched the Elder Domestic Violence Assistance Project in 2025. The project expands support for elder survivors of domestic abuse, a topic that Fulton felt was ambiguous to the public and needed more representation.
“This issue within the intersection of elder law and victims’ rights advocacy was really brought to my attention when I was a law student within the Elder Law Clinic,” Fulton said. “Professor Rima Nathan came to me to work on a benchbook on elder domestic violence to assist judges working on these cases. I came with a knowledge of domestic violence advocacy, but there was a lot of research to be done into the nuances that impact domestic violence advocacy when you’re representing elder survivors.”
While attending FSU, Fulton provided pro bono initiatives on behalf of her current employer – Legal Services of North Florida. She developed the research for Florida’s Elder Abuse Benchbook for the Office of the State Courts Administrator. Connections were made through her work with FSU’s Public Interest Law Center, which is comprised of several live-client clinics and projects.
Fulton currently serves as a staff attorney with Legal Services of North Florida, where she works in conjunction with the Elder Law Clinic and handles cases related to elder domestic violence. It’s a full-circle position that allows her to work with students from the clinic on these important cases, a reversed role she had at FSU Law just a few months ago.
The challenges faced by the aging population in domestic violence situations motivated her to pursue her project.
“What I’ve seen in this sphere is there is an inclination to define something as either domestic violence or elder abuse without acknowledgment of the intersection and the overlap that happens there,” Fulton added. “There’s this kind of dismissiveness of abuse when it is either purely financial in nature or is perpetrated by one’s caregivers as being less impactful. Another challenge is when survivors have less capacity to communicate what’s happened to them. That’s an obstacle that can really be exacerbated by the public’s perception of elder survivors.”
“There’s this kind of dismissiveness of abuse when it is either purely financial in nature or is perpetrated by one’s caregivers as being less impactful.”
– Alexis Fulton, staff attorney with Legal Services of North Florida
Fulton says there are a few significant factors that cause elderly victims to struggle in these cases.
“There are nuances involved in representing somebody that might be dealing with cognitive decline because of age, but oftentimes, there’s trauma that impacts people’s ability to recall things as well,” Fulton added. “Aging as well as trauma impacts one’s ability to advocate for themselves.”
Fulton feels her experience at the Public Interest Law Center prepared her for the next step in her career and wants other FSU Law students to take advantage of the opportunities offered to them.
“I would encourage current FSU law students to engage with as many of our public interest law clinics as their schedule allows,” Fulton said. “It was one of the most valuable things I did in law school.”
FSU Law was Fulton’s top choice, feeling most encouraged by the school’s approach to public interest work. Her time in Tallahassee has been highlighted by a community of support that includes colleagues in her legal field who have become her closest friends and provided her with professional and personal mentorship.
Her journey is one she doesn’t take for granted, advising current FSU Law students to embrace the magnitude of their education and how much it can help others.
“Having a legal education is a huge privilege in this world,” Fulton said. “I encourage everyone to engage in pro bono work, and to also explore public interest as a potential career path. It doesn’t have to just be a hobby, because there are ways to have really fulfilling and meaningful careers rooted in public interest law.”
For more information on FSU Law, visit law.fsu.edu.