Civil Gideon

The New York Times reports on the "Civil Gideon" movement, which is pushing to guarantee low-income Americans lawyers in civil cases involving basic needs like housing and employment. The problem is "free legal assistance in noncriminal cases is rare and growing rarer. A recent study in Massachusetts found that two-thirds of low-income residents who seek legal help are turned away." Several projects around the country are trying to improve guidelines for triaging clients between those who have to be turned away, those who can benefit from some self-help guidance and those who get their cases taken. And Washington state is experimenting with licensed legal technicians; that's an example of the efforts to find less costly alternatives than using lawyers on cases.