Editorial, "A Fair Shake for Legal Aid," The Washington Post, July 13, 2009

The Washington Post, in its third editorial on the importance of civil legal aid in five months, continues to emphasize the importance of LSC restrictions reform, writing: "For the past 13 years, the Legal Services Corp. has had its hands tied while trying to fulfill its mission of representing poor people in civil matters. Legal aid lawyers, for example, have been prohibited from using federal and even privately procured or state and local funds to initiate class actions; they have also been barred from seeking attorney's fees even when they prevail in court -- a benefit available to other lawyers in many civil rights or consumer protection matters. What's worse, legal aid clinics have been grossly underfunded, a result of cutbacks after the 1994 Republican congressional victories. This year, even lawmakers who once looked askance at legal aid programs as either a waste of money or a waste of time are rethinking their positions, in large part because more and more constituents need legal guidance to secure such things as unemployment benefits or to maneuver through foreclosure proceedings. It is unfortunate that it took a deep economic recession to highlight the importance of legal aid, but it is gratifying to see -- finally -- an appropriate legislative response. Senate appropriators agreed two weeks ago to lift almost all restrictions on how legal aid offices may use non-federal funds; they also have given legal aid lawyers the right to seek reimbursement of attorney's fees in litigation underwritten with non-federal money. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), chairwoman of the subcommittee that oversees legal aid funding, deserves credit for these latest developments, which won bipartisan approval from committee members. The full Senate is expected to vote on the bill before the August recess; the Senate must reconcile its bill with one passed by the House this year."

To read other recent Washington Post editorials on the issue of civil legal aid, or for updates on efforts to repeal the federal legal services restrictions, click here.