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The Alliance for Equal Justice |
What does civil legal aid entail? |
Who Benefits? |
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What is Civil Legal Aid? Civil legal aid provides free legal assistance to those facing urgent civil legal problems with nowhere else to turn. The Alliance for Equal Justice The Alliance for Equal Justice is a statewide network of organizations providing legal aid --information, advice and representation--to those in our community with nowhere else to turn. The Alliance is nationally recognized for its efficient and well-coordinated delivery of civil legal aid services that ensures poor and vulnerable people have equal access to the justice system when they face urgent civil legal problems.
What Does Civil Legal Aid Entail? Civil legal aid is often as basic as informing clients about their rights and responsibilities, helping low-income families navigate government agencies, writing letters or making phone calls to seek resolution. In many cases, civil legal help can be provided over the phone or in clinics with volunteer lawyers. Some problems are more complex and require more attention from an advocate skilled in a particular area of the law. Who Benefits from Civil Legal Aid? For families and individuals, receiving civil legal aid can mean the difference between shelter and homelessness, productive work and unemployment, food on the table and hunger, or economic stability and bankruptcy. Legal aid makes our communities safer, fairer places to live. Legal aid clients are:
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Legal Aid helps families keep their housing secure and prevents homelessness
Tacoma resident and father of two, Scott*, was on active duty in Iraq. Struggling to pay the rent, his wife Angie* and their girls came face to face with the threat of eviction. Legal aid attorneys stepped in and eviction was averted. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, legal aid helped the familiy get out from under the back-rent they owed. Without legal help, this family would have lost their housing.
Legal Aid fights for the rights of children
John* and his mother Lisa* became homeless after Lisa lost her job. A friend of the family offered to let them park their camper in the front yard. Because the friend's house was located within the boundaries of another school district, John's school refused to allow him to return. A federal law called the McKinney-Vento Act provides protection to children and families who are experiencing homelessness. To promote educational stability, the act requires schools to let homeless children continue to attend their home school despite having transitional living arrangements. Legal aid helped John and his mother advocate for his rights under the McKinney-Vento Act. The District agreed to readmit John and provide him with transportation to school. Lisa recently found a new job, and John is finishing the school year while he and his mother look for an apartment.
Legal Aid helps protect consumers from scams and predatory lending practices
Margaret*, a Spokane senior, was pestered by a collection agency that tried to set up a usurious payment schedule on a debt incurred in 1964. Legal aid attorneys confronted the colleciton agency with the fact that the six year statute of limitations had long since expired and the collection agency ceased all further contact with Margaret. Without legal help, Margaret would have struggled to pay this debt on a fixed income and face a possible bankruptcy.
* These clients' names have been changed to protect their confidentiality.
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