FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 13, 2003
CONTACTS
Judith Berrett
Director of Member and Community Relations
206-727-8212
judithb@wsba.org
Kathy Henning
Communications Specialist
206-733-5932
kathyh@wsba.org
Most Low-Income Washington Residents Face Legal Problems
Without Legal Assistance
Seattle Washington, October 13, 2003 — An astonishing 87 percent of Washington's low-income households experience a civil legal problem each year, and only 12 percent of these households are able to obtain assistance from a lawyer, according to a study just released by the Washington State Supreme Court Task Force on Civil Equal Justice Funding.
"The enormity of this crisis is staggering," said Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) President David W. Savage. "Equal access to justice for all is a cornerstone of our democracy, and it is unacceptable that the vast majority of Washington's poor and vulnerable residents are unable to obtain necessary legal assistance. While for many years the WSBA has recognized that a severe problem exists, and has worked diligently to find solutions, we have lacked solid statistical evidence about the magnitude of the problem. The Washington State Civil Legal Needs Study tells us that the problem is even more severe than we had thought, despite the efforts of our state's legal services providers and the more than 50,000 hours of private attorney time spent every year providing free legal services to low-income people across the state. The WSBA has consistently worked to support efforts to generate adequate levels of federal, state, and other funding for legal services, and will continue to work with the Supreme Court to develop solutions to this problem. The Supreme Court is to be commended for commissioning the study."
Among its key findings, the study reports an overwhelming need for legal assistance with such basic human needs as housing, family safety and security, and employment matters. Significantly, women and children have more legal problems than the general low-income population, especially on matters relating to family law and domestic violence. Nine out of 10 low-income people who do not get legal assistance receive no help at all and end up living with the consequences of the problem. Of the 10 percent who try to get help elsewhere, most turn to organizations that cannot provide legal advice or assistance.
Although Washington has an exemplary coordinated statewide civil legal-services delivery system comprising a variety of public and private organizations (including civil legal-services providers, volunteer-attorney programs, law-school legal clinics, public-service organizations, law libraries, county clerks and courthouse facilitators, domestic-violence and other human- and social-services providers, and many others), it is woefully under-funded and, as this study so clearly shows, there are still thousands of low-income residents who are unable to obtain the help they need. In addition to statistical information, the study includes personal stories that very poignantly illustrate how many individuals suffer greatly because they cannot obtain legal assistance.
The comprehensive study took a three-pronged approach: (1) 1,333 low-income people were interviewed in person; (2) 810 low- and moderate-income individuals were interviewed by phone; and (3) those who work in the legal system completed a written "stakeholder" survey.
A copy of the Court's news release, 82-page report, and executive summary can be found on the Washington Courts website.
About the Washington State Bar Association
The Washington State Bar Association is a private, nonprofit organization authorized by the Washington Supreme Court to license the state's 27,600 lawyers. The WSBA both regulates lawyers under the authority of the Court and serves its members as a professional association—all without public funding. As a regulatory agency, it administers the bar exam, provides record-keeping and licensing functions, and administers the lawyer discipline program. As a professional association, the WSBA provides continuing legal education for attorneys, in addition to numerous other educational and member-service activities.
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