Too many Americans can’t afford the costs of basic legal representation. These are hardworking people and small-business owners whose income disqualifies them from help like Legal Aid or a public defender.
It’s time to find new options so average Americans can obtain lower-cost representation. Opening up legal services to trained individuals without a law degree or bar membership could provide many Americans with an effective professional regarding legal documents and court proceedings.
Without changes, many middle-class Americans are trapped in a series of tough choices.
If they choose to hire a lawyer, they may be putting themselves into debt by using a credit card or taking out a loan for the legal costs of a divorce, a civil court case involving property or a neighborhood dispute. Even basic wills drafted by a lawyer have grown more costly.
That quandary forces many people to represent themselves in court or attempt drafting legal documents — not an ideal situation. Many people mistakenly believe a judge can help out by giving them legal advice during a hearing or trial; judges are prohibited from offering legal advice. A judge can, of course, explain procedures during a court case. For most people, that alone can be confusing.
The reality is, people represented by someone with legal training fare better in court. An individual with legal training can avoid the errors a layperson might make in drafting wills or trusts.
The idea of allowing individuals without a full law license to practice in the courts was long resisted by organizations like the American Bar Association, but that opposition has now softened.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch is among those leading the charge for innovative approaches to making less-costly legal services available. Justice Gorsuch co-wrote an opinion column for USA Today advocating changes. Competition, he noted, is bound to bring down costs.
The National Center for State Courts found that about 76% of people in civil legal proceedings represented themselves in court. And that doesn’t mean simply showing up. It means filing documents and proving or disputing a case with evidence admissible in court, with witnesses and documents.
Some states already have moved to open up provision of legal services to non-lawyers and employ safeguards just as the medical profession does for nurse practitioners and physician assistants. In Arizona, a new status of licensed “legal paraprofessionals” has been created. Among the areas in which the paraprofessionals can practice are family law, debt collection, landlord-tenant cases and administrative law. The new category of legal workers must follow the ethical requirements for lawyers and will be subject to discipline for violations.
Paralegals often do much of the behind-the-scenes work for lawyers. It makes sense to allow them a limited practice in the courts, whether that be in the drafting of wills or representation in some civil cases and family law proceedings.
Americans need choice and lower costs for legal services. It’s time for all states to move toward more options in provision of legal services.
First Published: December 30, 2020, 5:00 a.m.
