WHY IT MATTERS IN ARKANSAS
THE IMPACT IN ARKANSAS
After confronting the statistics, the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission quickly realized that the justice community and state leaders should be informed about the crisis in the state’s civil legal system. This educational process needed to be tied to the highest ideals of the Constitution and the legal profession, and to the common decency of the Arkansas spirit. It also needed to provide immediate support to the members of the justice community, who could then progress on their own in expanding access to civil justice. Once these goals were met, the Commission needed to provide legal information to the full community of citizens. Policy makers needed to be informed about the ongoing crisis, and about the limited financial resources devoted to civil legal aid. Combining these efforts would fulfill the Promise of Justice that our Constitution requires.
Town Hall Meetings – Focus on the People of Arkansas
In 2006, the Commission held Town Hall Meetings in each of the state’s four Congressional districts. The meetings were hosted by each district’s representative. The Commission heard the testimony of over 150 clients, judges, attorneys, legislators, community service providers, and other citizens concerned with the problems created when access to the justice system is not available. From those comments the major factors emerged which affect the quality and availability of justice.
(1) The dominant factor is poverty, which creates a large pool of people eligible for legal aid. Over 550,000 Arkansans meet the guidelines for service.
(2) Immigration creates a special challenge to the legal aid system based on cultural differences and, in some cases, fear of the law given circumstances in native lands. Language differences are also an important part of this dynamic. In too many circumstances immigrants are preyed upon and exploited. Their low income in many cases makes them eligible for targeted legal aid, especially in the area of domestic abuse.
(3) Veteran’s legal needs were the third most unanticipated issue that came into focus at the Town Hall meetings. Arkansas is ranked 9th in the nation in the number of veteran residents. Almost 14% of the state population are veterans. Many veterans are uninformed about their rights and the benefit programs available to them, particularly with regard to injuries they sustained during service. Proper management of their affairs while on active duty was also an issue. In may instances, those who have served are left out of the system they fought to uphold.
(Town Hall Meeting Summary Report)
Circuit Judges and Clerks Survey – Focus on the Judiciary
The Commission Chairman and a judicial leader in the Texas Access to Justice Commission made a presentation in October 2005 to the state’s judges at the Arkansas Judicial Conference. As with the Town Hall Meetings described above, the Commission sought to better understand circumstances and needs from the perspective of those involved in delivering judicial services--judges and clerks--especially as related to self-represented [pro se] litigants. To gain this information the Commission developed and implemented an eleven question survey. Fifty-four [54] of the one hundred fifteen [115] circuit judges responded, a 47% response rate, which makes the information statistically reliable. A similar survey was sent to circuit clerks throughout Arkansas to which sixty responded, again producing reliable results.
Fifty-eight [58] percent of the judges had more than 5% of appearances in their courtroom by pro se litigants. Two judges saw more than 50% pro se appearances . The average was about 10% pro se statewide. Clerks saw a greater number of pro se litigants averaging about 17% of their contacts. Seventy-nine [79] percent of the judges and eighty-eight [88] percent of the clerks identified seeing an increase in pro se over the past three years.
Judges identified the most frequent cases in their courts. Divorces were most predominant, followed by Orders of Protection/Domestic Violence, Child/spousal support, name change and Child Custody/visitation. Judges and clerks concluded that among all the steps the Commission could take to improve pro se litigation [brochures, an on-site facilitator, videos, training of court personnel, and website] the highest priority would be creating approved forms.
Acting on that expressed need the Commission’s Pro Se [Court Assistance] Committee has nearly completed development of an online Pro Se Divorce Packet for uncontested divorces. These Commission and court sanctioned forms are utilized throughout the state to facilitate the pro se litigant’s court process. This addresses the most frequent type of pro se case as the Commission moves to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of all aspects of improved access to justice.
An update survey was conducted in late 2008, the results of which will be available in early 2009, in order to measure current impact and identify new ways the Commission can enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the court process. (View Report Abstract)
DVD - Forging the Road to Civil Justice
A goal of the Commission is to expand access to civil justice through community education. The Commission decided that the most effective vehicle to do this would be a DVD which could be used by some of the same groups of individuals who presented information at the Town Hall Meetings--namely, judges, attorneys, political leaders, agency directors, and clients. The DVD highlights the need for expanding civil legal aid in Arkansas. The case is made eloquently by Supreme Court Justice Annabelle Clinton Imber. Her plea is followed by three client stories from the recent archives of the legal aid providers in the state. Their stories are told by the clients themselves with accompanying narration. Each story focuses on a poignant aspect of the daily work of legal aid attorneys. The first story is a divorce and custody case involving domestic violence and immigration issues. The second case involves an erroneous removal of federal benefits from a grandmother and the young child she is raising. The third case involves guardianship issues for the surviving widow and child of a U.S. Army GI who died in Iraq. These are all “people on the edge”, as Justice Imber points out in the opening segment of the DVD. Without legal aid their problems would be unaddressed. (View Video)
Increasing Pro Bono Activities
Pro Bono is a principle long established in the legal community. American Bar Association Model Rule 6.1 sets out the parameters for measuring the commitment to pro bono for every attorney in the nation and state. The rule has undergone a series of changes since its inception in 1969, but its major objective has remained the same: “Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence or professional workload, should find time to participate in serving the disadvantaged.”
The Commission recognized the need to expand pro bono efforts even further as one important way to address the deficit of civil legal services for the disadvantaged. The Commission recommended to the Arkansas Bar Association and to the Arkansas Supreme Court the following changes to Model Rule 6.1 as it applied in Arkansas.
- Mandatory Reporting of Pro Bono Hours by all attorneys in the state.
- Establishing an Aspirational Goal of 50 hours per year of pro bono work for each attorney directed toward clients that meet legal aid guidelines.
- Providing a $400 annual payment to legal aid organizations in lieu of rendering pro bono services.
The legal community in Arkansas has demonstrated its commitment to pro bono over the years. In 2007, some 900 volunteer attorneys closed cases for legal services which amounted to an in-kind contribution of over $800,000. Also, 800 attorneys made contributions of over $225,000 in lieu of service for a total pro bono contribution of over $1,000,000. (Learn more about pro bono)
Educating Leaders About Access to Justice
The Commission’s Education Committee has been actively informing critical leaders in both the justice and political communities. In addition to production of the Commission DVD, the first annual report was developed, The Promise of the Constitution. To date the report and DVD have been provided to members of the Arkansas Supreme Court, all circuit courts, the Court of Appeals members, Legislators, the Arkansas Bar Association and county bar associations, the Governor and stakeholders in the work of legal aid throughout the state. When the update of the Annual Report is ready in January 2009, it will be given to all members of the 87th General Assembly, civil and legal leaders throughout the state, and Arkansas’ Congressional Delegation.
Also distributed throughout the circuit courts are forms developed by the Commission. These include the Legal Aid poster and packet containing brochures, including brochures about how to access online forms to complete various legal steps in self-representation. The Commission also has an educational presence at major judicial and legal conferences along with regional librarian conferences, since most public libraries have computers with access to the legal aid website along with instructional brochures about how to navigate the site and produce the documents required.
Additionally, this website – Equal Justice Watch – is a creation of the Committee through the Education Commission.
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