We are all familiar with the concept of “justice for all” and with the phrase “if you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you…” but, many people are not aware that an attorney is only provided in criminal cases. In civil (non-criminal) cases, such as eviction and foreclosure, domestic violence, child custody, education, health care and veterans’ affairs, there is no constitutional right to an attorney.

The problems this causes are many, particularly for low-income and otherwise disenfranchised individuals and families. Challenges such as difficulty in understanding the rules and procedures of a court; inability to adequately articulate facts, causes of action, or petitioned relief; misunderstanding of the respective roles of judicial officers, court personnel, or opposing counsel are common. The inexperience of self-represented persons can lead to additional litigation, resulting in cost & delay for all parties, and sometimes an order setting aside an executed agreement.

LSHV steps in at critical moments in families’ lives – e.g., after loss of a job and benefits, or diagnosis of an illness – which resulted in civil legal issues. Often, they are lost in the legal system and even in those cases that have legal merit (which an overwhelming percentage do), the lack of a trained advocate usually results in defeat.

In addition to helping individuals to obtain or maintain subsistence incomes, become or remain stably housed, and live safe and healthy lives, civil legal services are crucial to our democracy for the following reasons:

– Programs like ours ensure fairness in the legal system by ensuring that “equal justice for all,” one of our country’s most fundamental values, is available to all, not just those who can afford to hire an attorney.

– Civil legal service programs help individuals of all backgrounds to effectively navigate a complex court system, and to understand the rules and procedures that affect their cases, as well as their rights and responsibilities. This has the added benefit of streamlining the court system and cutting down on court costs.

– Civil legal services programs are cost-effective in that they, by “issue spotting,” can prevent or solve problems at an early stage. These programs save taxpayers money, e.g., by reducing homelessness, thereby preventing the costs to local governments of providing emergency shelter or by maintaining neighborhood home/property values by preventing foreclosures.

– Programs like ours make it easier for individuals and families who we can’t represent to access the information they need to advocate for themselves in civil proceedings, e.g., through our pro se guidance or by using self-help forms or legal templates.

– And overwhelmingly, our ability to educate the “system” over time has shown to be effective in helping judges and advocates operate more efficiently and accurately in an overburdened system.

Review The Justice Gap: The Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Low-Income Americans from the Legal Services Corporation and the NORC at The University of Chicago. (2022)

LSHV provides free comprehensive civil legal assistance to poor and low-income individuals and families (most living at or below 80% of the Area Median Income), and other vulnerable individuals, who can’t afford/don’t have access to representation when their basic needs, e.g., subsistence-level income, nutrition, shelter, safety, healthcare, and education, are at stake. We also work to pursue equity through dismantling systemic oppression.