ABA Journal

Access to Justice

366 ABA Journal Access to Justice articles.

Fill the ‘Justice Gap’: Victims of domestic violence need your pro bono legal help

I’ll never forget sitting in professor Sarah Buel’s Domestic Violence and the Law class at the University of Texas School of Law, as she shared her iconic article: Fifty Obstacles to Leaving, a.k.a., Why Abuse Victims Stay.

Civil legal aid shrinks the justice gap and makes the court system more equitable

The ABA has been a committed supporter of the Legal Services Corp. from its inception as well as all forms of civil legal aid. “Equal justice under law is not merely a caption on the façade of the Supreme Court building,” Justice Lewis Powell said in a 1976 speech to the ABA. “It is perhaps the most inspiring ideal of our society. It is one of the ends for which our entire legal system exists.”

Silver Gavel Awards go to works featuring Emmett Till, Roe v. Wade

This year’s recipients of the Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts delve into a multitude of pressing and prominent legal issues, including abortion rights, affirmative action and modern-day slavery.

ABE’s annual grant program sends $300K to 12 innovative projects

Low-income clients overburdened by debt, transgender and nonbinary people who need help changing their names, and youths experiencing homelessness are among the groups supported this year by the American Bar Endowment’s Opportunity Grant Program.

Court watch movement is growing in numbers and public attention

For the past two years, singer-songwriter Fiona Apple has volunteered with Courtwatch PG, the largest court watch program in the country, to observe legal proceedings in Prince George’s County, Maryland, from her home in Los Angeles. Apple has also joined a group of advocates calling attention to the concept of court watching and aiming to get more people involved.

‘Desperate for lawyers,’ Maine considers alternative path to law license

Maine lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow aspiring lawyers to skip law school if they study under a supervising attorney for two years.

ABA asks Supreme Court to review Alabama case involving fixed bail amounts

ABA has a long history of advocating for indigent defense and public defenders

For more than a century, the ABA has advocated on issues related to indigent defense, primarily through its Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense. In fact, SCLAID (when it was operating as the Standing Committee on Legal Aid Work) stated in its 1937 annual report: “We believe that every man accused of serious crime is absolutely entitled to counsel and that, if too poor to employ one, society must furnish him that lawyer.”

Colorado will license paraprofessionals to perform limited legal work

The Colorado Supreme Court has approved a new rule that allows licensed nonlawyer paraprofessionals to perform limited legal work in some divorce and child-custody matters.

Court backlogs persist in this state because of shortage of attorneys; ‘the wheels of justice depend on lawyers’

Georgia courts are having trouble addressing case backlogs because the state has a shortage of lawyers, including prosecutors and public defenders, the state’s chief justice said this week.

Weekly Briefs: Legal sector continues to gain jobs; Roe v. Wade archive auctioned

Legal sector adds 1,500 jobs

The legal services sector continues to add jobs, despite reports of layoffs at some BigLaw firms. The sector gained 1,500 jobs in February, according to…

DoNotPay doesn’t live up to its billing as a ‘robot lawyer,’ offers ‘substandard’ legal docs, suit claims

A would-be class action lawsuit alleges that the DoNotPay website is engaged in the unauthorized practice of law and is harming its customers by providing legal services that are “substandard and poorly done.”

Which consumers are interested in legal services from nonlawyers and why?

A forthcoming research study from the Duke Center on Law and Technology found that some people want to solve legal issues on their own, but they would like a way to check in with someone to make sure they aren’t missing anything.

Fictional ABA Techshow hearing tackles hot-button issue on amending rules of professional conduct

Should states relax rules of professional conduct to address the access-to-justice crisis and make legal services more affordable? On Friday, a panel of experts took on that question during a fictional hearing at the second and final keynote at this year’s ABA Techshow at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.

Universal Migrator snags first prize at ABA Techshow 2023’s Startup Alley competition

Universal Migrator won first prize at the seventh annual Startup Alley pitch competition at the ABA Techshow 2023 on Wednesday evening after facing off against 14 other finalists.

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