The recent wildfires in Oregon, and tragic fire in Maui, are salient reminders that such disasters can affect any of us. They also have legal implications after the fact. Here are some resources in Oregon for those affected by natural disasters, and for those who want to prepare for such possibilities.
Preparation for Disasters
Preparedness Resources, Oregon Disaster Legal Services
The Oregon State Bar recently launched Free Legal Answers in partnership with the American Bar Association that uses volunteer Oregon attorneys to answer legal questions for free for qualifying patrons.
The site can help get answers to questions on Oregon topics such as family law, eviction, and consumer law. If you are interested in getting a question answered the website will guide you through the process. After the disclaimers on the first page, you will be taken to a page that gives more details on who qualifies and what is done with your information. This site is geared to help low-income patrons so be prepared to provide income information and to answer other questions. You can submit your question if you qualify.
There is a limit of 3 different legal questions per year and you must meet the qualifications each time you use the websites.
How did we answer that?
By Paula Simon
We had a younger patron come into the library who was interested in the process to become emancipated from their parents. What is emancipation? According to the Washington County Juvenile department, emancipation means “that a 16- or 17-year-old person can be given certain rights and responsibilities of an adult or 18-year-old person.”
A patron came in wondering if bankruptcy was right for them. Obviously we can’t answer that question, but we offered to show them resources that explain bankruptcy, and how to find bankruptcy attorneys.
The first thing we made sure they understood is that bankruptcy is governed by federal law and is handled by federal bankruptcy courts. In Oregon that would be the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Oregon. They have some helpful information on their website, including rules, forms, and general information.
We showed them books in the Washington County Law Library that discuss bankruptcy, including a practice guide by the Oregon State Bar and a Rutter Group practice guide. We also pointed out our Nolo self-help books that discuss bankruptcy – these can also be found through your local public library or the State Law Library’s online access to Nolo.
How Did We Answer That?
We had a patron whose mother died in Kentucky. This was during the pandemic so travel from Oregon to Kentucky was not very practical. His sister still lived in the area, so he contacted us asking for ideas on how to help his sister with the estate. He wanted to do some research on finding a lawyer, being an executor of the will, and if there was anything he could do to help remotely.
Even though he was interested in Kentucky procedures, there were still some things we could point him to here in our library that he could read and let his sister know about. There are many NOLO books (which both law libraries and public libraries usually carry) dealing with wills and estate planning. Since NOLO books are not state specific these were a good primer for the patron and his sister. In Oregon we have access to NOLO books online thanks to the State of Oregon Law Library. A public library may have information about a similar problem in another state.
A patron came in who had lost her father. She knew she needed to do something about his estate but had no idea where to start. A friend had told her she might not need to file anything with the court. She wanted to know what to do and if the court needed to be involved.
First, we pointed her to resources, such as law dictionaries, to explain a couple basic terms.
If you are facing eviction there are some resources to help.
First, reach out to Legal Aid’s Eviction Defense Project; use the form or phone number on their website.
Second, check out Legal Aid’s Landlord-Tenant legal information and the Oregon State Bar’s information on landlord-tenant law. Their websites can help answer some of your questions.
Ken Svengalis has published a 2nd edition (2022) of his “A Layperson’s Guide to Legal Research and Self-Help Law Books” — and it’s half the price of the first edition.
“A Layperson’s Guide to Legal Research and Self-Help Law Books” can now be purchased at the Author Reputation Press bookstore. (Paperbound edition ($49.95) and an eBook edition ($24.99).)
Note 1: Please do NOT purchase this 2nd edition from Ken’s former website, NE Law Press, where only the previous edition of the Layperson’s Guide is for sale. (Ken’s 2021, 25th edition, of his “Legal Information Buyer’s Guide” is still for sale from the NE Law Press website.)
Recommended reading for anyone who thinks more tech, online forms, and better legal design will substitute for professional legal services, i.e. People Need Lawyers (and lawyers in public service need more support):
“They Had Access, But They Didn’t Get Justice: Why Prevailing Access To Justice Initiatives Fail Rural Americans,” by Michele Statz, Hon. Robert Friday, and Jon Bredeson, published in:
Georgetown Journal on Poverty Law and Policy, Volume XXVIII, Number 3, Spring 2021, 321
The Oregon State Bar (OSB) is requesting feedback on their proposal on licensing paralegals:
“… to provide some legal services that currently only lawyers may provide….”
Read the OSB summary of the proposal, view the video, and link to the questionnaire:
Oregon Legal Research Blog