Legal Action Works (LAW)
The Problem:
Low-income individuals are usually unable to afford quality legal services to address the legal obstacles in their lives.
Our Unique Response:
CitySquare’s Legal Action Works (LAW) Center provides comprehensive legal services to low-income families who could not otherwise afford legal representation to handle family crises. Approximately 80% of our cases are family law; of this, over 33% involve domestic violence, which greatly endangers the victim as well as the children in these households. At LAW:
- The same attorney represents each client from the beginning of a case to its conclusion, working with the client to assess the family’s legal needs in all areas to develop a comprehensive plan of action.
- Because our funding is not tied directly to the volume of cases closed, LAW is able to handle cases with higher degrees of complexity than many other agencies.
- Unlike other pro bono legal service providers in the community, LAW is able to serve undocumented immigrants in civil cases, thereby addressing a major gap in the legal services landscape.
- Unlike other service providers in the community, LAW charges fees on a sliding scale basis for those who do not make enough to pay for traditional legal services, but who make a little more than is allowed under federal funding standards.
- Of the average caseload of 150-175 cases carried by the LAW Center attorneys and staff at any given time, some 75% are brought to resolution within one year of opening the case file. Resolving their legal issues will, in turn, increase the level of safety, security and stability for our clients and their families as they work toward lifting themselves out of poverty.
- LAW closes some 250 cases each year.
Our Biggest Challenge:
Our biggest challenge is funding for our legal services program. LAW’s budget has historically been 50% committed funding (funding that came to CitySquare specifically for LAW) and 50% CitySquare general funds. This means that LAW is always at risk of losing staff, and therefore capacity, when the budget gets tight. LAW needs supporters who will help us find more committed funding so that we can continue to provide our services to neighbors who cannot afford an attorney.
Our Effectiveness:
A regular and thorough review of clients’ case files enables LAW to gauge the short-tem success of its provision of legal services. There is no requirement for clients to keep LAW staff apprised of their life events after their LAW cases are resolved, however many clients do form an ongoing relationship with LAW staff and/or are referred within the CitySquare network of services, so long-term outcomes can be captured in many cases as well. To hear from an individual whose life was changed through receiving legal services from LAW, click here
To donate to CitySquare’s LAW programming, click here
