Mississippi Access to Justice Commission: Sharing Free Legal Resources with Mississippi Libraries Mississippi Library Commission August 17, 2017 Tiffany M. Graves Mississippi Access to Justice Commission

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Mississippi Access to Justice Commission 31% percent of Mississippi children ages 0-18 live in poverty, compared with the national percentage of 22%.  22% of Mississippians live in poverty. The national percentage is 15.4%.  71% percent of Mississippi students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch. 26% of Mississippi women live in poverty.  The national rate is 15.4%.  123,000 of Mississippi children live in extreme poverty. That is, they live in families with incomes less than 50% of the federal poverty level. In 2016, 50% of the poverty level for a family of 4 was an annual income of $12,150. 

Mississippi Access to Justice Commission Who We Are What We Do How We Are Organized What We Have Accomplished Since 2006

Mississippi Access to Justice Commission Library Partnerships Public Awareness Workshops Lawyers in the Library Legal Advice Clinics Legal Clinics for Self-Represented Litigants

What is Civil Legal Aid? Civil Legal Aid ensures fairness for all in the justice system, regardless of how much money you have. It provides access to legal help for people to protect their livelihoods, their health, and their families. Civil Legal Aid makes it easier to access information—whether through easy-to-understand forms, including online forms, legal assistance or representation, and legal self-help centers—so people can know their rights. Civil Legal Aid is a powerful tool. It helps people living in poverty build a foundation of stability so they can create a better future for themselves, their families and our communities.

Self-Represented Litigants Mississippi Constitution, Art. 3, Section 25, “Access to courts” Mississippi Code of Judicial Conduct, Cannon III, a 7: “A judge shall accord to every person who has a legal interest in a proceeding, or that person’s lawyer, full right to be heard according to the law.” How many people are representing themselves? Why are they doing it? Expense of retaining attorneys Presumed “simplicity” of the case Limited capacity of legal services programs “Do-It-Yourself” Social Movement Rarely is it a “choice”

Self-Represented Litigants Barriers for Self-Represented Litigants Legal language Complexity of the clerk’s office Problems with service Legal requirements that are not intuitive Procedural rules that vary between types of cases

Legal Technology and Access to Justice “Technology can and must play a vital role in transforming service delivery so that all poor people in the United States with an essential civil legal need obtain some form of effective assistance.” Legal Services Corporation’s “Report of The Summit on the Use of Technology to Expand Access to Justice”

Free Online Legal Forms

Free Online Legal Forms

Free Online Legal Forms

Mississippi Free Legal Answers

Expunge Mississippi

Pre-Screening Expungement Web App

Mobile App for Self-Represented Litigants

Legal Service Providers Traditional Legal Aid Providers Catholic Charities, Inc. Choctaw Legal Defense Mississippi Center for Legal Services North Mississippi Rural Legal Services Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project Mission First Legal Aid Office Gulf Coast Women’s Center for Nonviolence and Northcutt Legal Clinic

Legal Service Providers Other Nonprofit Legal Organizations American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi Mississippi Center for Justice Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliance Mississippi Workers’ Center for Human Rights Law School Clinic Programs Mississippi College School of Law University of Mississippi School of Law

Mississippi Access to Justice Commission Website: www.msatjc.org News & Events List of Legal Services Providers Phone: 601-960-9581 Email: tgraves@msbar.org Social Media Pages Twitter: @MississipppiATJ Facebook: Mississippi Access to Justice Commission