Legal Aid in Lancaster: Why it Matters
Legal aid services in Lancaster play a vital role in a just legal system. For individuals and families facing legal challenges, the prospect of finding and affording representation can be daunting. Legal aid affords those who qualify the opportunity to address their situations with the security of having trained attorneys at their sides. Providing access to justice through free legal assistance, legal aid has an innately positive impact on individuals , communities and society at large. It helps vulnerable people resolve problems and assert their rights, all while reducing the strain on public institutions and fostering confidence in courts and other legal channels. Access to justice for low-income individuals represents a key component of a just society. Many financial obstacles prevent people from meeting their legal needs or finding adequate representation — legal aid is designed to fill these gaps.
Legal Aid Services in Lancaster: What’s Available
Lancaster legal aid services cover a wide range of law specialties. Regardless of your situation, income or circumstances, there is a strong chance that you can find free legal assistance for your specific situation.
Family Law
Family law attorneys can help you with matters such as divorce and child support. If you are considering filing for divorce, you may benefit from a consultation. Your lawyer can counsel you regarding your options and help you find out whether you are eligible for counsel at no cost.
Immigration Services
Immigration services can assist you if you or a family member who is seeking asylum, work or educational opportunities in the U.S., or other immigration-related matters.
Housing
Legal aid services can help you if you are dealing with tenant rights issues, landlord obligations, domestic violence cases, foreclosure or eviction cases. There are attorneys who can specifically address problems that will affect you and your family in the months and years to come.
Criminal Defense
Do you need legal assistance to deal with criminal charges or active warrants? Do you or your family members need help with a current situation involving law enforcement, corrections or parole? Turn to Lancaster legal aid services for the assistance you need.
Your legal aid attorney will have a selection of cases to work on at one time, so you may not receive an immediate response after requesting help. However, you will learn more about the length and type of legal aid you will be getting and what other actions you should take in the meantime.
Legal aid services also include help with citizenship, employment and unemployment issues, health care issues, special education, benefits (e.g., Social Security), community issues, public services, military family matters, civil rights issues and advanced health issues.
Who Qualifies for Legal Aid in Lancaster
The criteria for eligibility in receiving legal aid in Lancaster are determined by income levels, the nature of your legal issue, and how much of a financial impact it would place on you to represent yourself. In some cases, you may not even be eligible for free legal advice but simply qualify for reduced rates. This is especially the case if your income is just above what is needed for complete legal aid. For many legal matters, there are restrictions, meaning that regardless of your income, you cannot get legal aid.
The process for deciding whether you can receive Lancaster legal aid involves an application to the Directorate of Legal Aid. The application will request information about your residence (must be legal), information about your income, and information about the case you need legal advice. If you are seeking advice for your own personal legal needs, your income should be completely your own, but if you are seeking legal aid for a child or a spouse, you are only required to provide the income information for that particular legal need. Your personal income does not have to be divulged if filing for a child, for example.
In many instances, the process for determining eligibility is determined within a few days, though in some cases, it can take up to two weeks for results. When an advisor does contact you, they will often have all the information they need to approve or deny your request. If you have not heard back from the advisor within one to two weeks, you can request a follow-up.
How to Access Legal Aid in Lancaster
Looking for legal aid providers in Lancaster County? Finding free or low-cost legal assistance can sometimes be confusing. Fortunately there are several resources available that can match you up with a local legal aid provider.
The Lancaster Bar Association, which is a private organization open to all attorneys licensed to practice in Pennsylvania, provides local legal aid services through the Lancaster Bar Foundation. The Lancaster Bar Foundation acts as LSCAN’s office in providing free civil legal counsel to those who qualify. Eligible cases are not slef-referrals. Instead, cases are referred in by another local legal aid agency, as are those coming from The Bar Foundation’s partner Family First Health.
Contact: Lancaster Bar Foundation, 28 East Orange Street, Suite 100, Lancaster, PA 17602, 717-393-0739
The law firms of Caldwell & Kearns, PC, and Thomson, Zhao & Associates, LLC, also provide free legal services to Lancaster County residents through the Lancaster Bar Foundation as part of a pro bono program run by the Lancaster Bar Association. Pro bono is the Latin term for "for the public good," which in this case means an attorney is providing a legal service for free.
Contact: Lancaster Bar Foundation, 28 East Orange Street, Suite 100, Lancaster, PA 17602, 717-393-0739
The Hispanic American Cummunity Center (HACC) provides a full array of services to the neediest multilingual families in Central Pennsylvania, and while it is not a direct legal aid provider, a social worker from the organization will meet with individuals looking for legal assistance, assess their needs and then refer them to appropriate social services such as Catholic Charities, MidPenn Legal Services, Lancaster Barnstormers and United Way of Lancaster Learning Center . After initial steps have been taken, HACC will continue to follow-up with the family until their client issues are resolved.
Contact: HACC, 508 E. Ross Street, Lancaster, PA 17602, 717-394-6362
Starting in 2017, the Backpack Project has managed a new Legal Access Clinic within the Lancaster Public Library. The clinic is free to all participants, although registration is required in advance. During the clinic, Lancaster Legal Aid Network lawyers will meet with individuals who are seeking assistance with civil legal issues including expungements and access to debt relief and protection orders. Attendees are encouraged to bring any documents they may need to discuss, and each individual will have 20 minutes with a volunteer attorney.
Contact: Lancaster Legal Access Clinic, Lancaster Public Library, 125 N Duke St., Lancaster, PA 17602, 717-394-2651 ext. 127
The United Way of Lancaster County website offers a Legal Services brochure with a comprehensive list of professional and legal service counselor organizations. Individuals searching for legal aid providers in Lancaster can get a sorely needed preliminary overview of local legal service providers through this resource. Please keep in mind that the listing includes some of LSCAN’s local partners, but does not include all of the organizations with which LSCAN collaborates.
Case Studies: How Legal Aid has Helped in Lancaster
Story 1: An Unfair Eviction
Jessica and her two young children faced unlawful eviction from their Lancaster County rental home. The landlord had failed to maintain the property and prevent a stubborn water leak. When Jessica withheld her rent, the landlord set out to evict her. With our attorney’s assistance, Jessica was able to remain in her home while getting her landlord to fix the leak and avoid future problems. Jessica now has permanent housing and enjoys her job.
Story 2: Domestic Violence Survivor
Maria was a domestic violence survivor when she contacted Lancaster Legal Aid. She had a Protection from Abuse order already in place and was taking steps to have it transferred from out of state to Pennsylvania. Her goals were to have the abuser removed from the house, to protect herself and her children, and to obtain a divorce. Maria met with an attorney and began taking steps towards obtaining these protections.
Story 3: Social Security Benefits Denied
Jose was on Social Security benefits until his income got stopped due to a suspended license. He needed assistance unlocking the door to reinstate his benefits before he was homeless and hungry. With our attorney’s help, Jose applied for reinstatement of his Social Security benefits.
Story 4: Child Support Order
Two fathers recently walked into legal aid seeking child support orders. In both cases, they had been supporting children who were either not theirs or who had been taken by a previous mother in a previous relationship. We walked one father through the process of obtaining a court order to block his ex from taking his current child. We assisted the other with obtaining a child support order so that he could obtain reimbursement for his previous support for the children of his previous partner. In both cases, the fathers achieved their goal with relatively little effort and money.
The Challenges of Legal Aid in Lancaster
Even with the assistance of organizations such as those listed above, open access to the justice system is still a daunting challenge for many who do not have the means to hire an attorney. As state and federal lawmakers continuously look for ways to tighten their belts and further constrain public funding, services provided by legal aid groups are often on the chopping block. With growing populations and increasing needs , getting the help people need to navigate the legal system can be next to impossible.
State and federal budget cuts have cut deeply into the resources of many legal aid organizations. Attorneys who once had substantial caseloads have been forced to invest countless volunteer hours just to reduce their case loads to a manageable level. Funding that adequately promotes free legal services cannot be granted unless certain crucial primary functions are performed—and those functions are hindering the ability of attorneys to handle all of the cases they must address as part of the range of services they offer to regular clients.
Demand for free legal aid services in the local community continues to grow. Media reports speculate that the U.S. economy will better in the coming years but that does not reduce the number of individuals and families who need to retain legal counsel immediately. The highest demand for services comes from those who must file for bankruptcy, seek protection from abuse or have nowhere else to go when complex legal matters arise. When a domestic violence situation is involved, the stakes are especially high and the services most needed.