The Poor Need Lawyers, Too

Government-downsizing Republicans in the House want to curtail legal services for poor Americans. Passage of any one of the several mean-spirited proposals now before Congress would be cost-ineffective.

The Clinton Administration solidly supports adequate federal funding for legal aid services, and with good reason. Poor families have no other recourse in landlord-tenant disputes and other housing matters, which are the bulk of local cases. Poor widows need these lawyers to resolve problems with private pensions and Social Security checks. Poor mothers depend on legal aid to resolve problems with welfare benefits or to escape domestic violence. Fewer than 15% of the legal aid cases ever go to court, and overhead is low; as legal services go, it’s a bargain.

One GOP bill would fund legal aid through tax-deductible donations. Charity could not raise enough money to do the job. Though many private lawyers do pro bono work, few can practice it full-time or with the expertise of committed legal service lawyers.

Pending legislation would cut or eliminate funding for the federal Legal Services Corp. but allow states to divert funds for such services from their federal welfare block grants. That would be robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Some Republicans would rein in Legal Services by eliminating class-action lawsuits. But such suits often save money and time for courts as well as litigants--and particularly for taxpayers.

Some Republicans would bar legal service lawyers from suing the government. The rationale seems logical: Why allow government-funded lawyers to sue the government? However, such a ban would undermine one of this nation’s foundation points: equal justice under the law.

The proposed restraints are not good government--they are politically inspired. The repeated challenges to welfare laws initiated by lawyers who work for Legal Services affiliates have outraged some conservatives. The Reagan Administration opposed efforts by Legal Services lawyers on behalf of farm workers in California, and it heavily cut funding.

Without a strong federal Legal Services Corp., many of the poor will be denied legal advice and representation in times of desperation. That is not justice for all.