Executive Director, Bruce Iwasaki

Building a State Justice Community

August 2001

Legal Services Corporation funding in 2001 is barely above what it was in 1981, and far lower in real dollar terms. Yet there is a growing need for these resources as California's population increases and diversifies. We must build a state justice community. Thoughtful Californians recognize that if the courts and legal profession are viewed as available only to the wealthy, respect for institutions of justice will suffer.

Fortunately, new partnerships have begun. Chief Justice Ronald George has urged greater pro bono activities by the state's attorneys and prodded local courts to provide more assistance to unrepresented litigants. The state Equal Access Fund supports partnerships between courts and local legal services programs: LAFLA has two such grants, expanding family law counsel in the downtown courthouse and providing unlawful detainer advice to pro per tenants with volunteer attorneys.

LAFLA, as the largest legal services program in the state, has taken a leadership role in fostering a state justice community. We have worked with the California Commission on Access to Justice to secure state funding for legal services, and we play a leadership role in the Legal Aid Association of California and State Bar committees. We also work collaboratively with other legal services programs, and provide financial support to organizations such as Public Counsel, Western Center on Law & Poverty, and the Inner City Law Center.

In addition to increasing resources, we must also address the disparity of legal resources for the poor. There are 102 legal services organizations in California. Adding all sources of funding together, the budgets of these law firms total about $23 per year for every poor person in the state. One-third of these programs are in the Bay Area. That region spends more than $45 per poor person. In contrast, L.A. County -- including LAFLA, Neighborhood Legal Services, Public Counsel, Bet Tzedek, and others -- spends about $22 per poor person. In rural Kings County, resources total just over a meager $8 per poor person.

Increasingly, it is not enough for individual legal services programs to build up their own resources and work in their own niche. We must build a stronger, more coordinated and comprehensive system of justice, linking with business and local government, law firms and courts, community organizations and activists. If we are to expand the pool of funders and supporters for full and equal access to justice, we must demonstrate that we are working efficiently and collaboratively to achieve our goals.

BGI