Articles Posted in Legal Self-help Community

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While there are dozens of print resources (and even more online) on specific wills, trusts, and estate planning issues and questions, here’s a short list of the basic, not to be skipped, Oregon estate planning forms and practice materials. These are print-only resources in most law libraries, though some libraries may have on-site online or CD-ROM access.

1) Oregon State Bar (OSB) estate planning practice and course books

2) Oregon Will and Trust Forms in the U.S. Bank 3-volume set (also on CD-ROM)

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I’m an energetic advocate of DIY Legal Research (as are most public law library librarians) and a somewhat less than enthusiastic advocate of DIY Lawyering (aka self-help, self-representation, pro se litigation, pro per representation), especially for people who don’t have any research experience or aptitude for hours of study, note-taking, writing, preparation, decision-making, and the sense to consult experts when necessary (not to mention having the patience of a cat watching its prey).

I’ve learned over the years that the most successful self-help litigant isn’t necessarily the smartest person, though “smart” can help. But persistence, attention to detail, listening, patience, and good manners can often win out over “smart.”

Our best pro se litigants consult attorneys. The litigants save money by thorough research, study, observation, taking chances and making mistakes, and not a small amount of luck. They also have lots of energy that is used staying up late drafting motions, answers, letters, and reading the law, in all its procedural and substantive glory.

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If you’ve never had the pleasure of chuckling over a coffee and the London Review of Books Personals ads (some also collected in this book, featured in a 2006 NPR story ), here is a Small Claims Court one. Who knew?!

“I was recently victorious in a small claims court and with my compensation cheque I’d like to take you (F to 48) on a weekend bicycling trip to the Lake District Centre Parc. This offer doesn’t include meals or alcoholic beverages. M, 53. box no: 11/01”

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Arcade Book Exchange will be a Stevens-Ness Partner/Dealer for the Western Washington County (Oregon) area beginning June 1st, 2010.

Gene Horton, of Horton’s Sav-On Office Supply in Forest Grove, will be retiring and closing his store on May 28th. The Arcade Book Exchange will take over the Stevens-Ness Legal Forms portion of his business.

If you have any questions please feel free to call the Arcade Book Exchange at 503-648-5821 or visit their website:

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For those who are waiting (breathlessly, perhaps) and wondering whatever happened to Law dot Gov, especially given how fast all those other new dot gov sites have popped up, this is for you:

Google Group for Law dot Gov

The Law dot Gov Google Group is comprised of those on the Law dot Gov frontlines, but updates and commentary on the initiative will also appear on a variety of law librarian and lawyer blogs.

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On Saturday, May 8th, the Oregon State Bar (OSB) Civil Rights Section and the Consumer Law Section and will be presenting:

“Consumer Rights in Tough Times: Foreclosures, Garnishment, Debt Collection, Credit, & Consumer Protection.”

Learn about your legal rights as a consumer during tough economic times. Topics will include:

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Each Oregon county law library could list its own FAQ (frequently asked questions) referrals, but here are mine:

1) Landlord-tenant law:
a )The Landlord-Tenant info at Legal Aid Services of Oregon (LASO). Click on Housing for most current brochures and information flyers.
b) The Oregon State Bar Landlord-Tenant webpage and a list of legal aid contacts.
c) Oregon state government website

2) Find Your Legislator (Elected Officials) (from the Oregon Legislature’s website)

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I too have a successful pro se litigant (in my public law library) who had these: “favorable facts, obsessive organization, and fearlessness.” As you’ll see from this Wall Street Journal article, it also takes a judge who is willing and able to see (and speak) when the emperor has no clothes. And in some cases with pro se litigants, it doesn’t hurt to have lawyers on the other side who rely more on muscle and tricks rather than on law. And of course, a little luck doesn’t hurt, either.

Nurse Outduels IRS Over M.B.A. Tuition: How One Woman Went to Tax Court and Won Deduction, by Laura Saunders, Wall Street Journal, Monday, January 11, 2010:

Excerpt: “A Maryland nurse accomplished two rare feats in her battle with the Internal Revenue Service: She defended herself against the agency’s lawyers and won, and she got a ruling that could help tens of thousands of students deduct the cost of an M.B.A. degree on their taxes….
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Few taxpayers decide to go toe to toe with the IRS as Ms. Singleton-Clarke did, arguing her case without a lawyer. For good reason: In 2009, individuals won only about 10% of about 300 such cases, according to data from Tax Analysts. Ms. Singleton-Clarke fought her case in Tax Court, a venue where taxpayers don’t have to pay the contested tax before going to trial. The court has a special procedure for small cases….
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Ms. Singleton-Clarke’s encounter with the tax system shows what it can take for one individual to prevail over the IRS against the long odds: favorable facts, obsessive organization, and fearlessness. She says she didn’t have a lawyer because she couldn’t afford one.
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Both the IRS’s actions and her reactions are typical, says Christopher Bergin, president of Tax Analysts, a group that fights for tax-system transparency and since l972 has won a series of freedom-of-information cases against the IRS. “Without doing anything illegal, they muscled her. That’s what they do. The pressure can be terrifying,” he says…. (read full article)

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