'Justice for All' campaign seeks to fund legal services for poor

Funds raised will give aid specifically to the Springfield office and the counties it serves

Faced with an already-tight financial situation seven out of every 10 people who seek representation are turned away for lack of resources Legal Services of Southern Missouri is embarking on a fund-raising campaign to raise $500,000 in the next five years.

The "Justice for All" campaign started Oct. 16 and is the first of its kind in the region.

The need

Douglas B. Kays, executive director of Legal Services of Southern Missouri, said the organization would like to use the "Justice for All" campaign to help more people, but the problem is that the organization has been hit with more budget cuts, so what it will do instead is help make up for lost money.

"The federal government is going to cut our federal funding through the Legal Services Corporation, which is the federal agency that funds legal services programs around the nation, because of the census," he said. "They claim there are fewer poor people in southern Missouri, and we get our grant money based on the poor-person population."

The state's budget problems also mean that the organization will lose part of its state funding as well, Kays said. The organization's third source of funding interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts also is decreasing, he said.

"That is a foundation, and all the money comes from interest. Interest being so low, that money is also being cut," he said.

In all, the organization will have about $500,000 less in the coming year than it's had in previous years. "And we never had enough, obviously, so that's a tremendous problem for us," Kays said.

Leading the campaign

The Hon. John C. Holstein of Shughart, Thompson & Kilroy, is director of the campaign, which is being led by a fundraising campaign cabinet. The campaign was officially kicked off during the monthly meeting of the Springfield Metropolitan Bar Association.

Holstein said the campaign is a worthwhile cause, and it provides a good option for the legal community.

"Lawyers have an obligation under the code of ethics that says we should participate in pro bono activities. The rules specifically provide two ways that lawyers can do that. One way is to represent the poor to go out and take cases and we have a number of lawyers in this area who regularly take cases on a pro bono basis, representing poor folks who otherwise would not have representation," Holstein said.

"The other way that lawyers may fill that obligation under the rules is to donate money to a legal services organization such as Legal Services of Southern Missouri."

But, he said, "there's never been a fund-raising project among lawyers to allow them that particular option, so we thought it would be appropriate to give lawyers that particular option rather than just doing free legal work."

About 20 to 30 members of the local bar are helping the campaign cabinet by volunteering their time to solicit donations.

"The campaign is focused on the legal community," said Sharon Alexander, director of development for Legal Services of Southern Missouri.

"We're soliciting contributions from private attorneys, as well as law firms," she said.

Attorney Fred Hall of Hall, Ansley, Rodgers & Condry, added, "We're also soliciting from public attorneys attorneys who work with the city, the attorneys who work for the state and the federal government and we're also soliciting the judges."

Hall said that response to the fund drive has been positive.

Alexander said that the campaign eventually will branch our and seek donations from the business community.

Cases served

Legal Services of Southern Missouri provides services in 43 counties, and Kays said the organization handled about 5,000 cases in 2001.

The "Justice for All" campaign, however, is designed to benefit the Springfield office, which has a service area encompassing Greene, Barry, Cedar, Christian, Dade, Dallas, Douglas, Howell, Laclede, Lawrence, Oregon, Ozark, Polk, Shannon, Stone, Taney, Texas, Webster and Wright counties.

Holstein said that there are standards clients have to meet to receive representation from Legal Services of Southern Missouri, including income levels and the types of cases the organization will handle.

"We don't take claims against the government. We don't take class action claims, and we don't take personal injury-type claims where there is a contingent fee involved," Holstein said.

Kays said Legal Services of Southern Missouri also is not allowed to do criminal law, or types of cases that might generate fees for a private lawyer, such as car accidents or malpractice.

Because the agency can't work with every case that comes through its doors, it has developed a priority plan for the types of cases it does take, Kays said.

"In the family law field, it includes cases where there's been abuse of a spouse or children. We take landlord/tenant cases on the part of tenants who we think have a good legal argument cases. We have consumer law cases. Sometimes we take certain kinds of bankruptcy cases where the debts incurred were not the fault of the person needing the bankruptcy," Kays said.

He said Legal Services of Southern Missouri handles juvenile cases in Greene County only, because the organization has a special contract with the county.

"Those (cases) involve where there's been a child taken from the home and the parents are trying to reunite the family," Kays said.

Kays said at least 50 percent of the cases handled by Legal Services of Southern Missouri fall into the family law category.

Another type of case the office will handle is administrative law, which might deal with pension, disability, Social Security or Medicaid issues.

But, Holstein said, "Sometimes, it's just giving people somebody to talk to about legal issues that they've come up against and giving them advice on where to go. It's as simple as being an adviser on legal issues for poor people."

Legal Services has some staff lawyers who represent many clients. Other lawyers in the community volunteer to provide Judicare.

Kays said with Judicare, attorneys receive $40 per hour for their services. He noted, though, that most lawyers regularly charge $100-$125 or more per hour. Quite a few cases are done pro bono, and lawyers provide services free to the clients and to Legal Services of Southern Missouri.

The organization works to provide preventive help to clients to help them overcome obstacles and move forward with their lives.

"What we've found is people who have really been burdened by bankruptcy, problems of that nature, who've become very productive, self-sufficient citizens. They've become tax-paying citizens," Hall said. "So it really helps the whole community."