Petition Asks Wisconsin High Court to Adopt Civil Gideon Rule
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is being asked to adopt a rule that would provide free lawyers to some civil litigants.
The proposed rule would require free representation to protect poor litigants’ rights to “basic human needs,” the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Cases where the rule would apply involve food, shelter, clothing, heat, medical care, safety and child custody.
The legal-aid group Legal Action of Wisconsin submitted a petition seeking the rule change. It was signed by more than 275 lawyers and judges. The group’s executive director, John Ebbott, told the publication that the cost of implementing the rule could range from $50 million to $80 million a year.
In a 2006 resolution, the ABA endorsed a right to a lawyer in civil cases when basic human needs are at stake. The proposal is known as a “civil Gideon” rule for the U.S. Supreme Court case that found a right to counsel for defendants facing possible jail time.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “California Will Pay Lawyers for Poor in Eviction, Custody Cases”
