This brief presents policy recommendations for the incoming administration, which range from improving border screening practices, improving shelter conditions, increasing access to legal counsel, expedited court procedures and impact on due process, adjudication of children’s immigration and asylum cases, and return and reintegration.
Geography
Expediting Permanency: Legal Representation for Foster Children in Palm Beach County
Researchers at the University of Chicago conducted an evaluation of a partnership between a legal aid organization and a social service provider for children. They find that when children are represented, they had a higher rate of exit to permanency (between 1.38 and 1.59 times faster). They also find that this program is cost effective.
Evaluation of the QIC-ChildRep Best Practices Model Training for Attorneys Representing Children in the Child Welfare System
This program evaluation of the QIC-ChildRep training for attorneys representing children in child welfare cases finds that children assigned to attorneys who underwent the intervention’s training were more likely to experience permanency within 6 months when compared to attorneys who did not participate in the intervention. Attorneys who participated in the intervention met with their child client more frequently, spend more time on cases, contacted more parties, spent more time developing the theory of the case, and had more contact with foster parents and substitute caregivers.
Disasters in Rural California: The Impact on Access to Justice
This report analyzes how disasters have disproportionately struck rural parts of California. These areas often have higher poverty rates than urban ones, and are typically the slowest to recover from disasters. During disaster and recovery, low-and modest-means communities often do not have access to legal remedies, meaning that recovery is often uneven. This report outlines how legal aid and pro bono assistance help residents in areas of housing, consumer issues, employment, insurance, public benefits, replacing vital records and documents, and accessing FEMA benefits.
Report of the Summit on the Use of Technology to Expand Access to Justice
The 51 attendees at the technology summit issued developed a strategy to implement the the use of technology to help with: document assembly for self-represented litigants; better “triage”—that is, identification of the most appropriate form of service for clients in light of the totality of their circumstances; mobile technologies; remote service delivery; expert systems and checklists; and unbundled services.
Clearing a Path to Justice: A Report of the Maryland Judiciary Work Group on Self-Representation in the Maryland Courts
This report outlines the work group’s efforts and study on self-represented litigants in Maryland. It provides an overview of the current efforts, initiatives, and recommendations on how to aid self-represented litigants, enhance the response of court staff, enhance the judicial response, support improvements in the legal services delivery system, and create an access to justice commission.
A 108% return on investment: The Economic Impact to the State of North Carolina of Civil Legal Services in 2012
The work of three civil legal services providers across North Carolina generated $48,775,276 in economic impact in 2012.
California’s Attorney Deserts: Access to Justice Implications of the Rural Lawyer Shortage
In this study, the California Commission on Access to Justice reports on attorney deserts — places where there are too few attorneys and high numbers of unmet legal needs. They find that attorney deserts are an acute problem in rural areas. This is not a problem concentrated in California — in the US, approximately 2 percent of small law practices are in rural places, serving approximately 20 percent of the US population.
The Attorney As the Newest Member of the Cancer Treatment Team
In this study, researchers profile LegalHealth, a free legal services program that works alongside health care providers in cancer care. Because oncologists often discuss insurance, employment, and financial concerns at first diagnosis and then later on, advanced planning (e.g., health care proxies, advance directives, etc.), they are in a prime position to partner with legal services. In this article, the researchers profile the benefits to patients, families and care partners, as well as benefits to providers and to the health care institution.
Access to Justice Commissions: Increasing Effectiveness through Adequate Staffing and Funding
This ABA report on access to justice commissions outlines components of successful commissions, recommendations for both individual commissions and for national organizations, and an overview of funding and in-kind support used by commissions. It also provides charts, maps, and graphs of where commissions are located, commissions by budget level, and other key characteristics.
Legal Aid Research 