{"id":99,"date":"2006-09-08T19:33:39","date_gmt":"2006-09-08T23:33:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/shlep\/2006\/09\/08\/a-guide-or-a-guild-where-does-your-bar-"},"modified":"2006-11-21T20:34:54","modified_gmt":"2006-11-22T00:34:54","slug":"a-guide-or-a-guild-where-does-your-bar-group-stand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/2006\/09\/08\/a-guide-or-a-guild-where-does-your-bar-group-stand\/","title":{"rendered":"a guide or a guild: where does your bar group stand?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bar associations can play a major role helping or<\/em> hindering the growth of the self-help law movement, and shlep<\/em> hopes to cover developments within the organized bar that relate to achieving better access to justice and legal services for all Americans through self-help resources. As you can see from two of the links in our sidebar’s Self-Help Gateways collection (i.e.<\/em>, the ABA’s ProSe\/Unbundling<\/a> webpage and FindLegalHelp<\/a>.org), the American Bar Association has been a positive force. But, we’re afraid the same cannot be said yet for many state and local bar associations.<\/p>\n

\"black For example, despite a few bright spots, ethicalEsq<\/em> was pretty cranky back in August 2003, in a posting entitled “Finding Self-Help Info on Bar Ass’n Websites (Good Luck!)<\/a>.” Your Editor’s alter ego found that “It is rare to find a bar group that lets the public know about viable alternatives to hiring a lawyer for solving legal problems” and that the consistent Message from bar associations to consumers is “If you can afford a lawyer you should hire one. Only the indigent cannot afford a lawyer”.<\/em> In numerous posts, ethicalEsq<\/em> took bar groups — e.g.<\/em>, in Illinois and Maryland<\/a>, New York<\/a> and Ohio<\/a>, Massachusetts<\/a> — to task for obstructionist attitudes toward self-help law (including reform of small claims<\/a> courts), while noting the occasional exception.<\/p>\n

There are vast differences in approaches among bar associations across the nation (with unified bars apparently more amenable, in general, to self-help projects than their volunteer cousins). Thus, the California Bar presents a thoughtful discussion, in a divorce and separation pamphlet, on Do I Need a Lawyer?<\/a> and Can I Handle My Divorce without a Lawyer?<\/a>. However, the New York State Bar Association’s You and Your Lawyer<\/em><\/a> e-pamplet opines:<\/p>\n

Why you should not seek to handle your own legal affairs<\/strong> <\/font><\/p>\n

\"dunceCap\" A number of do-it-yourself \u201ckits\u201d are offered for sale from time to time. Kits are available for getting a divorce, declaring bankruptcy, or forming a business. It\u2019s not illegal <\/u>for you to use these for your own affairs; however, you risk paying the consequences. Kits may appear to save you money, but a minor detail, one that you might overlook but one that a lawyer is trained to notice, could result in a loss far greater than what you \u201csave\u201d by trying to be your own lawyer. After all, there\u2019s an old saying, even for lawyers, that \u201che who represents himself has a fool for a client<\/em>.\u201d<\/font> (emphasis added)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Similarly, although the Santa Clara County [CA] Bar<\/a> Association has created an extensive Self-Help Law Center<\/a>, the Public Resources sections of many other bar association websites have information limited to Grievance Procedures, the group\u2019s own Lawyer Referral system, and pro bono<\/em> resources (for the indigent and other disadvantaged groups). <\/font><\/p>\n

\"SoapBox\" <\/font> As ethicalEsq<\/em> pointed out<\/a> last year, the President of one state bar association responded to an excellent report on the need to improve to access, through many types of pro se<\/em> assistance, by writing an article<\/a> asserting that self-represented litigants (plus judges and court employees) must be educated <\/font>so they understand that every litigant needs a lawyer<\/em>. He stated that a program would be <\/font>established, that would match pro se<\/em> litigants with attorneys who would charge them for their <\/font>services (but, maybe a little less than usual, if necessary to get the business). The bar prez also <\/font>complained that the self-represented got too much help at court, giving the \u201crepresented\u201d clients <\/font>the impression that they too might not need lawyers the next time they are at court.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

There is much that bar groups can do to improve access to justice: \"you!\" <\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

(1) Make unbundling an effective tool for making legal services cost-<\/font>effective and allowing consumers a more central role in solving their own legal problems, by implementing needed changes in ethical rules and helping to educate the bar on the benefits and use of unbundling; <\/font><\/p>\n

(2) Help fund, tailor and produce, in their own states <\/font>and locales, self-help programs similar to the online and courthouse <\/font>resources available in <\/font>California<\/font><\/a> and <\/font>Nevada<\/font><\/a>, <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

(3) Local bar groups <\/font><\/font>could also recruit and train volunteers for hands-on assistance in <\/font>programs similar to those in <\/font>Duluth<\/font>, MN, and <\/font>Santa Clara, CA<\/font><\/a>.,<\/font><\/font><\/font> where lawyers help persons with legal problems <\/font><\/font>represent themselves. [Examples can be seen in the Dane County [WI] Bar Association’s Family Law Assistance Center<\/a>, and the free divorce and custody clinics<\/a>, and landlord-tenant resource center<\/a>, sponsored by the D.C. Bar<\/a> for persons wishing to represent themselves in such matters.]<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

(4) Conspicuously link to court-based programs in their jurisdictions from their association websites. [For example, there really should be an annotated link to this court Self-Help Center<\/a> and its discussion on Deciding Whether to Represent Yourself<\/a> on this state bar’s Public Law Help<\/a> page.] And, <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

(5) Lobby their legislature and judiciary for the funds and programs needed to make self-help a viable option for the public in as broad a spectrum of legal areas as possible. <\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

Is your bar group a guide<\/em> (helping to improve and expand self-help) or a guild<\/em> (building walls against self-help and looking after the financial interests of lawyers first)? Please let shlep<\/em> know what is happening in your bar association, and help make things happen yourself. [click to read more thoughts about the profession’s guild mentality<\/a>]<\/p>\n

____________________________________<\/p>\n

Which of the following symbols best represents the attitude of your bar group to the growth of self-help law?<\/em><\/p>\n

\"thumbUp\" \"onlineHelp.gif\" \"this \"GuidedSupport.gif\" \"watchStepSign\"<\/p>\n

\"ScaliaGesture\" \"thumbDown\" \"WrongWayN\" \"DoNotEnterSign\" \"poisonSkull\" \"noloShark\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bar associations can play a major role helping or hindering the growth of the self-help law movement, and shlep hopes to cover developments within the organized bar that relate to achieving better access to justice and legal services for all Americans through self-help resources. As you can see from two of the links in our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":437,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[900],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-viewpoint"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/437"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/shlep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}