Read the ABA article and the report:
“Can the access-to-justice gap be closed? These recommendations might make it possible,” by Victor Li and James Podgers, ABA Journal, August 06, 2016.
And read Bob Ambrogi’s comments on the report, at his LawSites Blog post:
It’s summertime. Even lawyers are allowed to dream about food and love. From the ABA Journal Galleries:
6 lawyers with food truck businesses (ABA Gallery, circa 2014)
10 romance novelists with law degrees (ABA Gallery, circa 2014)
From the ABA Journal: “20 apps to help provide easier access to legal help,” by Joe Dysart, April 1, 2015.
Words to the Wise: DIY Lawyering can be risky – and expensive – if you have to pay a lawyer later to fix what you could have done correctly, and cost effectively, from the start. If you need to respond to a summons, draft a lease, a power of attorney, a contract, or a will, or take any legal action that requires you to know not only how to research the law, which rules of procedure to follow, and how the courts interpret the law, please consult an attorney. As a very wise lawyer/librarian says:
“If you read only what is written in the statutes, the cases, and the constitutions you will be absolutely wrong about what the law is.”
The January 2015 ABA Journal has these articles and more:
“Washington state moves around UPL, using legal technicians to help close the justice gap,” by Robert Ambrogi
“It’s unethical for prosecutors to allow debt collectors to use official letterhead, says ABA opinion,” by David L. Hudson, Jr. (ABA Formal Ethics Opinion 469)
Commission on the Future of Legal Services website and report.
“Background: Easy access to affordable legal services is critical in a society based on the rule of law. Yet our courts are seriously underfunded. Legal proceedings are growing more expensive, time-consuming, and complex. Many who need legal advice cannot afford to hire a lawyer and are forced to represent themselves….” [Link to website and report.]
“Too many shut out of justice, ABA president says:
Wlliam C. Hubbard, president of the American Bar Association, calls it “the justice gap.”
Deep down, all Americans believe they have a right to their day in court. They probably don’t envision that might mean a day in court with no lawyer on hand to guide them through it. But that’s the reality for an increasing number of people, perhaps one reason the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index ranks the United States only 19th out of 99 countries on access to justice ….” [Link to full article.]
From the ABA Foundation: “Part of access to justice gap is that Americans don’t know when to seek legal help, says study,” Aug 8, 2014, by James Podgers:
Link to report: ACCESSING JUSTICE IN THE CONTEMPORARY USA: FINDINGS FROM THE COMMUNITY NEEDS AND SERVICES STUDY
“Executive Summary …
Jim Calloway’s blog post: GPSOLO: Law Practice 2020 has lots of tips including this one from GP Solo, vol. 31 No. 3, by David Hiersekorn:
“Online Legal Paper Mills: Are They a Threat and How Do We Compete?
…. Using LegalZoom as an example, a consumer goes to the website and sees testimonials from smiling customers. Then they go through the online questionnaire, never encountering a question that they can’t answer. And soon they find that they are just a credit card number away from having the document they went looking for.
Oregon Legal Research Blog