What is Civil Legal Aid?

Civil Legal Aid is free legal assistance to low- and middle-income people who have civil legal problems.

These problems are non-criminal, but help people access basic necessities such as health care, housing, government benefits, employment, and educational services.

Civil Legal Aid Animated Video Explainer

Created by Voices for Civil Justice and Illinois Equal Justice Foundation.

Transcript

If you're accused of a crime, you have the right to a lawyer, whether you can afford your own or not.

But what happens when it's a civil issue?

Whether you're facing something like foreclosure, not receiving your veterans benefits, or escaping domestic violence.

If you can't afford a lawyer, you might be stuck trying to represent yourself.

Uh oh...

And that's exactly where civil legal aid comes in.

It can come in many forms.

It might be a lawyer representing you in court, self-help tools to educate yourself, free legal advice, or a hotline to get you connected with the help you need.

Civil legal aid helps families advocate for themselves in court.

And it's cost-effective by solving civil problems early before they become bigger, more costly problems.

So investing in civil legal aid not only makes sense from a fairness perspective—we all deserve access to the justice system—but also from a fiscal perspective.

So what can you do?

Support civil legal aid to ensure that all Americans can protect their rights and count on fairness in the civil justice system.

If You Live in Another State

The laws are different from state to state. Search for a legal aid organization where your legal problem is based or use one of these tools:

• Legal Services Corporation’s Find Legal Aid Tool
• American Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Directory