This thesis considers how to best recognise and realise the contributions that clinical methodologies can make to legal education. The use of experiential learning methods and the combining of community service with student learning distinguish clinical teaching from other forms of legal education. The thesis focuses on making the most of this distinctiveness by deepening the understanding of the factors that influence the establishment and sustainability of clinical programs. It will be argued that sustainability can be promoted through the constructive integration of clinical methods and insights across the various activities of a law school. Clinical legal education programs often face a tenuous existence unless they are recognised as an integral part of the legal education project. A series of factors need to work together in order for a program to be established and then sustained. While no single factor can be taken to ensure the establishment and sustainability of a clinic program, the commitment and understanding of key staff to the clinic (both clinic supervisors and, beyond the clinic, law school leaders) is central to both establishment and sustainability. It appears that establishment is influenced more by contextual factors beyond the law school, whereas sustainability and continuing development are closely linked to factors more specific to each individual law school.