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    March 30, 2023

    ABA Day Advocacy Issues

    Robust LSC Funding Required

    The ABA has been a staunch supporter and ally of LSC since Congress created the organization in 1974

    The ABA has been a staunch supporter and ally of LSC since Congress created the organization in 1974

    The American Bar Association (ABA) hosted a successful 2023 ABA Day fly-in event this week,  the first in-person advocacy event since 2019. About 170 ABA and state and local bar leaders once again gathered in Washington, DC to reconnect with old friends and then headed to Capitol Hill to meet with their respective Senators and House Representatives. This year, our main focus centered on protecting and requesting increased annual funding for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC).

    The ABA has been a staunch supporter and ally of LSC since Congress created the organization in 1974. LSC’s core mission has always been to promote equal access to justice by providing funding assistance to civil legal aid programs nationwide that assist low-income Americans who could not otherwise afford an attorney to help resolve serious problems that directly impact their lives and economic stability. This has been a longstanding problem, which COVID-19 further exacerbated by creating a significant and urgent demand for civil legal assistance due to the unexpected spike in life-altering matters.

    However, some Americans and lawmakers remain unaware that having civil legal counsel often proves to be critically important, including in cases involving domestic violence and child abuse where a temporary restraining order may be instrumental in protecting them from further physical harm or in civil matters related to wrongful evictions and defending the rights of veterans.  

    ABA Day 2023 helped introduce this topic to the almost 90 new Members of Congress and further reinforced the need to champion LSC during meetings with more senior lawmakers. During in-person discussions, ABA members urged Senators and Representatives to add their signature to the letters being sent to the leaders of the Senate and House Subcommittees on Commerce, Justice & Science as they and their colleagues on the Senate and House Appropriations Committees begin to deliberate Fiscal Year 2024 funding levels for the federal government.

    Representative Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA-05) serves as the Co-Chair of the House Access to Legal Aid Caucus, and kindly delivered remarks and advice to our members Tuesday afternoon. Her fellow Co-Chair Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01) and Vice-Chair Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) also delivered virtual remarks. All of them urged ABA members to ask their local Members of Congress to publicly endorse the letters being sent to their colleagues serving on the Senate and House Appropriations Committees on behalf of LSC.   

    The deadline for Senators to add their signature to the letter being sent to the Appropriations Committee will be April 5. Senators can contact Jacob Ecke in Senator Murphy’s (D-CT) office to add their support.

    The deadline for Representatives to sign the letter being circulated in the House is March 31. Members of Congress can contact Jared Feldman in Representative Steve Cohen’s (D-TN-09) office to add their support.

    For people unable to join us in person for ABA Day, it is not too late to add your voice to the collective voice of the legal profession by sending a message to your Member of Congress urging them to support robust funding for the Legal Services Corporation. Together, we can help close the justice gap that currently exists and bring access to equal justice closer to a reality.

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