“Equal Justice under Law” is a founding principle of our nation dating back to the Preamble of the Constitution and a concept that is familiar to most Americans. We all believe that rich or poor, we should be treated equally in our courts. Although equal access to justice remains an ideal, the reality is very different for those unable to afford the assistance of counsel in civil cases. Unlike in criminal cases, there is no constitutionally established right to counsel in civil cases for those who cannot afford it, even in cases involving essential issues such as housing, healthcare, child custody, or protection from domestic violence. For people of limited means, the result is that in the vast majority of civil cases where crucial issues are at stake, they have to navigate a complex legal system alone.

There is a system of civil legal services available to those who cannot afford counsel that addresses a small percentage of the need, supported by funding from a variety of sources. The biggest source of funding is the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1974 that distributes funding from annual federal appropriations to 134 independent legal services providers throughout the country, in every state and territory of the United States. Current LSC funding is at about $375 million annually, to serve an eligible population of over 63 million Americans, the number of people who meet the qualifying criteria of earning no more than 125% of the federal poverty level. LSC funding supports programs to assist the 1 in 5 Americans at that income level or below, which is currently $30,313 for a family of four.