In FY 2009-10, civil legal aid provided, in a conservative estimate, a total quantifiable economic impact of $139 million, a return of $5.27 for every dollar invested legal aid programs from all sources.
Researchers and Academics
Legal Deserts: A Multi-State Perspective on Rural Access to Justice
The researchers surveys rural populations in six states — California, Georgia, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Maine, and South Dakota — to provide insights on the rural challenges confronting each of these states, the legal resources available, and existing policy responses.
Increasing Access to Restraining Orders for Low-Income Victims of Domestic Violence: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Proposed Domestic Abuse Grant Program
This report evaluates the benefits and costs of expanding the Domestic Abuse Grant Program (DAGP) to improve access to legal aid for women seeking restraining orders. Overall, the research team estimated that the net benefit from enacting the DAGP expansion would be $9,840,500.
National Evaluation of the Legal Assistance for Victims Program
The Legal Assistance for Victims Program (LAV) “has been a success” by promoting the delivery of high-quality and comprehensive services among legal aid and domestic violence victim service programs. The federal evaluation finds that despite LAV, there is a “chronic unmet need for attorneys.”
The Economic Impact of Iowa Legal Aid
Iowa Legal Aid’s financial impact on the Iowa economy in 2011 totaled $28,729,291.29. This represents a return of $6.71 for every single dollar invested in Iowa Legal Aid by sources within Iowa.
Representation in Mediation: What We Know From Empirical Research
The impact of representation for parties in mediation was largely indeterminate. Wissler suggests more research with random assignment of lawyers. She notes that lawyers may have become more adept at handling mediation over the last few years, since most of the studies reviewed in this article.
Medical-Legal Partnership: Impact on Patients With Sickle Cell Disease
This study looked at how legal interventions affected pediatric patients with sickle cell disease. The researchers find that of the 106 cases opened under the MLP partnership resulted in 99 closed cases with 21 of them “resulting in a measurable gain of benefits.”
Medical-Legal Partnership Impact on Parents’ Perceived Stress: A Pilot Study
This study analyzed patient stress before and after receiving a legal intervention through an MLP. The researchers find that patient stress decreased after receiving legal services.
Economic Self-Sufficiency among Women Who Experienced Intimate Partner Violence and Received Civil Legal Services
This study, funded by a DOJ award, found that for women who were experiencing intimate partner violence (also called domestic violence) and who received civil legal services for assistance in obtaining a civil protective order or assisting with a family law problem, saw increases in monthly income increase and number of assistance resources decrease. The study finds that “civil legal services are a critical component of a community coordinated response to IPV” (abstract).
Psychological Well-Being Among Women Who Experienced Intimate Partner Violence and Received Civil Legal Services
This study uses Sullivan’s Social and Emotional Well-Being Framework to see why and how women who experienced intimate partner violence (or domestic violence) and received civil legal services experienced improvements in psychological well-being. Women reported a decrease in depressive and PTSD symptoms over one year after receiving civil legal services.
Legal Aid Research 