Conference Panel Reiterates Need to Prioritize Access to Justice
2023年5月2日
D.C. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby (far left) opened the access to justice panel at the Judicial & 4月28日举行的澳博app大会.
At a crucial moment when the need for affordable legal services continues to rise, a panel of the District of Columbia’s top advocates of legal services met to discuss the importance, 的挑战, 以及在华盛顿获得司法救助的未来, D.C.
缺乏获得法律服务的机会影响到每个人, but those on the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum often struggle to find the resources they need at the most critical moments of their lives, D表示.C. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby as she introduced the panel at the Judicial & 4月28日举行的澳博app大会.
甚至在华盛顿特区也存在严重的分歧.C., where the local legal community highly values and emphasizes the importance of pro bono work, 首席法官说. “我们在上诉法院看到了这一点. 太频繁了, people are trying to navigate their civil cases that are life-changing matters to them — custody of their children, 拥有他们的房屋, 债, 凡是你能想到的,她补充道。.
And it’s not a system designed to be accessible to the uninitiated. 詹姆斯睡魔, 法律服务公司的名誉主席, said those who represent themselves in the labyrinthine civil courts system without legal training face insurmountable challenges.
“这是一个由澳博app创建的系统, 对于澳博app来说, 假设每个人都有澳博app,睡魔说, 谁担任民主党副主席.C. 司法公正委员会. “If you don’t have a lawyer, it’s opaque, confusing, hostile — anything but user-friendly.”
Often the cases involved are important matters with high stakes, he continued. “我说的不是交通罚单案件. I’m talking about cases that involve the most basic of human needs,” 睡魔说. “你头上的屋顶. 防止非法驱逐和丧失抵押品赎回权. 家庭的稳定——孩子的监护权, 孩子的抚养费, 监护, 收养, 个人安全, 针对施虐者的保护令, 经济生活. 在这种情况下，很多人都没有澳博app.”
联邦扶贫指导方针使这个问题复杂化. 项目 providing free legal services often cap at 125 percent to 200 percent of the poverty line, leaving a large gap of people living on low to moderate incomes who don’t qualify for aid, 但还是负担不起一般的澳博app费.
华盛顿特区的政策进一步加剧了这种情况.C.美国的生活成本很高, 那些活到200岁的人呢, 300, or even 400 percent of the poverty line still struggle to meet their family’s needs. 有一个孩子的单亲父母挣39美元,000 per year may be at 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for a household of two, D表示C Affordable Law Firm Executive Director Gabby Mulnick Majewski. “But that’s insufficient to meet even their most basic needs, let alone access legal resources.”
引用MIT的生活工资计算器, Mulnick Majewski said a single parent of one child in the District must earn $42.每小时61美元(或每年88,629美元)的生活工资. 这个数字远远高于39美元,为联邦贫困水平的200%提供了1万美元的基准, 这被认为是中等收入. And these are the clients who are seeking representation through the DC Affordable Law Firm,她补充道。.
睡魔认为这是一个可以解决的问题. 长期解决方案, 睡魔说, 应重点关注四点:监管改革, which could potentially allow well-trained nonlawyer legal professionals to assist those in need; a simplified court system that addresses how the landscape has changed since the current system was created; democratization of legal processes through technological tools such as ChatGPT; and bringing new people with different perspectives to the table.
但与此同时，更紧迫的挑战隐现. 市长穆丽尔·鲍泽提议2024年D.C. budget puts the future of free and affordable legal aid in further jeopardy. 她的提议包括削减近60%，从31美元.从700万美元到1300万美元.C. 诉诸司法倡议, which funds multiple legal services providers and pro bono programs across the District.
和D一起.C. 司法公正委员会 leading the charge, legal services groups are urging the D.C. Council to restore funding to the 诉诸司法倡议 to its 2023 level. 尽管形势岌岌可危, 该委员会的执行主任, 南希Drane, 对未来保持乐观.
“We have an incredibly robust network of legal services providers,” she said. “他们很熟练。, 他们很有动力, and we are lucky to have such a vast network here in the District.”
D的Darryl Maxwell.C. 酒吧公益中心对此表示赞同. “District has [more than] 700,000 residents,” Maxwell said. “在这个地区，有8万多名澳博app. So, when you think about it, our goal should be to activate all of them.”
