The Times-Picayune (6/17/19) — Louisiana will soon join most states in the nation in helping pay for legal assistance for some of its most vulnerable residents, as Gov. John Bel Edwards’ office said he plans to sign a bill that includes $500,000 for the effort.

The money will remove Louisiana from a list of only four states that don’t provide any funding for legal assistance in civil matters such as housing, health insurance, employment, parental rights and protective orders against domestic abusers.

The lack of public money had forced the nonprofits that provide such services in Louisiana – Southeast Louisiana Legal Services and Acadiana Legal Services Corporation – to drastically cut back. As a result, one or both of the parties in 75 percent of civil cases in Louisiana were forced to represent themselves.

Lawmakers approved money for legal aid on the last day of the session. Edwards’ spokesperson, Christina Stephens, said they are currently reviewing the funding bill “to prepare to sign it.”

“The Governor believes that funding for legal aid is critically important because it helps people access services they desperately need, but might not be able to afford,” she said.

Chris Ralston with the Access to Justice Commission, an organization created by the state Supreme Court and the bar association to improve access to the legal system, said this new funding will allow the nonprofits to hire additional attorneys after years of layoffs.

It will also allow them to qualify for grants from national foundations that were previously out of reach without a state contribution.

“The Kellogg Foundation won’t fund you if your state doesn’t. So, we’re already working on that,” Ralston said. “We don’t want the state to do it all for us, we just want to be in the game.”
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In Louisiana civil courts, the poor are left to defend themselves

Forty-seven states provide funding to help their most vulnerable citizens secure free legal assistance in civil matters. Louisiana, Florida and Idaho provide nothing.

The urgent need for state funding was more recently highlighted during the federal government shutdown, which followed two years of threats from President Donald Trump to eliminate all money going to civil legal aid – a potential existential crisis as 60 percent of Southeast Louisiana Legal Services’ budget comes from federal dollars. Should that money go away, and without any state funding to fall back on, the organization would all but cease to exist, said executive director Laura Tuggle.

Only three other states don’t provide any funding for civil legal services: Alabama, Florida and Idaho. What most states dedicate to these services varies widely, according to the American Bar Association. Arkansas provides $556,000 annually; Mississippi $708,000; Georgia $3.1 million; and Texas nearly $72 million.

There is monetary value of investing in such civil legal aid, according to a report by the Louisiana Access to Justice Commission. The study showed that there is a $9.13 return for every $1 invested. This represents homes and jobs saved, debt relief, and health coverage obtained, among other benefits.

Louisiana used to provide public funding for civil legal aid totaling $500,000 annually as recently as fiscal year 2008-09. Bobby Jindal, who became governor in 2008, eliminated the funding the following year. Lawmakers had not restored the funding, until now.

Southeast Louisiana Legal Services represents people who fall under the federal poverty guidelines: for an individual, that means annual income of $15,613; and for a family of four, $32,188.

The bulk of their cases involve family law, such as domestic violence, child custody, adoption and divorce. The next biggest issue is housing, which covers evictions, landlord and tenant disputes, successions, sub-standard housing and foreclosures. They also deal with disaster relief, bankruptcies, tax issues, social security, Medicaid and Medicare, fair labor standards, disabilities and wills and estates.

Read the original story in the Times-Picayune here.