Access to Justice

Tackling the Homeless Youth Crisis

The American Bar Association believes this is a global civil rights issue, and we urgently need the help of lawyers and legal leaders across the country.

Oct 1, 2017 4:15 AM CDT

ABA Medal Winner Supports LSC, Volunteering

John D. Feerick, winner of the 2017 ABA Medal, called on lawyers to help close the justice gap by volunteering to help those in need and by supporting the Legal Services Corp.

Oct 1, 2017 1:30 AM CDT

Joshua Browder: His ‘chat’ is not just talk

Joshua Browder

Sep 14, 2017 8:30 AM CDT

Matthew Stubenberg: Creating tech solutions to increase justice

Matthew Stubenberg

Sep 12, 2017 8:30 AM CDT

How can technology solve our access to justice crisis?

Access to justice, the justice gap, or equal justice, all describe the same problem. In the U.S, the majority of our citizens cannot get legal help, whether that is for criminal charges, civil matters, or their small-business issues.

Sep 8, 2017 8:00 AM CDT

Legal Aid: Easy Access

Microsoft is investing $1 million into a program partnership with the Legal Services Corp. and Pro Bono Net to develop web portals to access legal aid information. The funds cover the technology, implementation costs and services, which the LSC is hoping to have available by the second half of 2018.

Sep 1, 2017 1:20 AM CDT

Legal aid agency serving the Navajo Nation to close 3 offices

A legal aid office serving a heavily Navajo clientele is shutting three of its nine offices for financial reasons, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported Thursday. DNA-People’s Legal Services is responding to several years in which its expenses fell short of revenues. Santa Fe City Councilor Peter Ives, a member…

Aug 21, 2017 4:00 PM CDT

Indigent people should be guaranteed counsel for deportation proceedings, ABA House resolution says

The ABA House of Delegates is urging that federal, state and local governments work to guarantee legal representation for indigent persons in deportation proceedings. On Monday, the delegates approved Resolution 115, which calls for counsel to be appointed for indigent persons in removal proceedings at the federal government’s expense. It…

Aug 14, 2017 3:48 PM CDT

New law provides some New Yorkers facing eviction with free legal representation

New York City is the first municipality to guarantee attorneys for residents who face eviction or foreclosure and are considered low-income. Mayor Bill de Blasio signed the bill Friday, DNAInfo reports. Those who earn up to double the federal poverty line—$98,400 for a family of four—will qualify, according to the…

Aug 14, 2017 9:46 AM CDT

From Cop to Counsel: Former police officer now serves the homeless as a social worker and attorney

Jeff Yungman started his career as a street cop in New Orleans. He loved the city, and he loved his job. Somewhere along the line, though, he realized that he cared more about social justice than about criminal justice.

Aug 1, 2017 12:45 AM CDT

Nonprofits’ legal and tech support help resolve housing disputes

A new cadre of tech nonprofits, law school programs and government agencies around the country rethinking how people interact with housing court. In New York, nonprofits are experimenting with new hardware and software to help pro se litigants collect admissible evidence. In Massachusetts, a coalition is proposing to redesign housing court from the ground up.

Jul 1, 2017 1:45 AM CDT

ABA Day draws bar leaders to Capitol Hill to meet with Congress

Over 400 bar leaders from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands converged on Capitol Hill for hundreds of face-to-face meetings with members of Congress during the 21st annual ABA Day in Washington, D.C., which was held April 25-27.

Jul 1, 2017 12:40 AM CDT

Lawyers demonstrate patriotism through helping others and expanding access to justice

As America celebrates its 241st anniversary, we, as lawyers, should reflect on the vital role our profession has played in the building, governance, and preservation of our democracy.

Jul 1, 2017 12:35 AM CDT

BYU Law School’s new legal design lab aims to find solutions to access-to-justice crisis

Brigham Young University on Monday announced that its law school is a launching a legal design lab, which for its first project will help pro se defendants in Utah answer civil lawsuits. “There’s a crisis in law right now, and it’s that legal services are very expensive,” Kimball Parker, the…

Jun 19, 2017 5:02 PM CDT

Want to expand access to justice? Offer tiered training and differing practice licenses, profs say

Corrected: Civil legal assistance is elusive for low-income and even middle-class individuals. Eighty percent of low-income people in the United States can’t afford civil legal assistance, according to a Washington Post op-ed by two law professors. Meanwhile, 40 to 60 percent of the middle class have unmet legal needs.

Jun 7, 2017 8:00 AM CDT