Disasters, both natural and manmade, can result in large populations in immediate need of legal assistance on a number of topics. Although it is difficult to know when disaster may strike, legal services providers can have a plan in place to mobilize community attorneys to provide pro bono assistance when necessary. Including volunteer attorneys in the plan will allow the program to provide assistance to more people, more quickly and efficiently.
Disaster Relief Legal Assistance
Hurricane/Tropical Storm Helene Disaster Relief
The American Bar Association (ABA) Standing Committee on Disaster Response and Preparedness offers a lost of resources here.
Providing Pro Bono Legal Assistance
Lawyers licensed in Georgia, North Carolina or Tennessee can provide pro bono legal help through ABA Free Legal Answers, an online virtual advice clinic. All three states have added a category for Hurricane/Tropical Storm Helene legal issues. Support ABA Free Legal Answers in serving disaster survivors and others in need of legal help by donating today.
North Carolina Approves "Katrina" Order
On October 1, 2024, the North Carolina Supreme Court approved the North Carolina State Bar’s temporary rule amendment allowing lawyers not licensed in North Carolina to immediately begin providing pro bono legal services to indigent victims of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Helene.
The temporary rule, expiring in January 2025, permits lawyers licensed in other states but not in North Carolina to register with the North Carolina State Bar and begin immediately providing pro bono legal services through a legal services organization to indigent residents of North Carolina who are victims of Helene without first obtaining approval from the State Bar Council.
Tennesee Approves "Katrina" Order
On October 28, 2024, the Tennessee Supreme Court issued an order allowing out-of-state lawyers to temporarily offer their services, free of charge, to residents affected by severe flooding in East Tennessee.
The Rule will allow any lawyer authorized to practice law in another United States jurisdiction to provide free legal services to residents of the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Judicial Districts without seeking pro hac vice admission and without paying any admission fee. Such legal services will be assigned and supervised through TALS and LAET and the Court will determine by separate Order when emergency conditions have ended.
Lawyers from other states may register to provide pro bono legal services by completing this form.
Resources
Georgia Legal Aid has information on the Legal Assistance Hotline for Georgia Disaster Survivors, including counties covered.
The Legal Aid Disaster Resource Center has a collection of relevant resources and information.
The Legal Aid of North Carolina Tropical Storm Helene Disaster Assistance webpage has assembled numerous resources.
The North Carolina Justice Center has collected resources, including community partners in need of financial donations.
Pisgah Legal Services has provided a web page with information and resources for its service area, as well as a link for making donations.
The Tennesee Bar Association has assembled a list of Disaster Resources for Tennessee Lawyers.
Give to Support Relief Efforts
Inclusion in this list does not constitute endorsement of the organization or recipient.
FEMA offers a page on how to help persons affected by Helene.
Legal Services Providers in Affected Areas
Organizing a DLA Effort
Organizing a disaster legal assistance effort entails preparing a plan to set into motion in the event of a disaster. A lead organization or person should be designated to coordinate the effort. The organizations involved should develop contingency plans for communication and other logistics. Organizations should also develop and keep current a panel of volunteers, as well as a manual covering common legal situations and available resources. In preparation for delivering legal services post-disaster, this Attorney Disaster Toolkit from Iowa Legal Aid is a helpful overview of the common legal problems experienced by disaster survivors.
Utilizing the Internet to manage and coordinate the effort can streamline procedures. Volunteers can submit information via online forms to sign-up for pro bono opportunities. State Bar and legal aid or pro bono organizations' websites can also direct those in need of assistance to the appropriate resources, by providing information on various topics related to a specific disaster and information on how to seek assistance. The website can also include information on volunteering to provide legal assistance, an online application to volunteer, and online training materials. For example, after Hurricane Harvey, Texas Law Help developed a page devoted to Disaster Relief and Recovery information.
National Disaster Legal Aid website gathers resources from the American Bar Association. Legal Services Corporation, the National Legal Aid & Defender Association, Lone Star Legal Aid and Pro Bono Net.
ABA Resources
The ABA has a variety of resources available to assist with disaster response.
The American Bar Association House of Delegates at the 2007 Midyear Meeting in February overwhelmingly approved A Model Court Rule on Provision of Legal Services Following Determination of Major Disaster. The model rule would allow out-of-state lawyers to provide pro bono legal services in an affected jurisdiction and lawyers in the affected jurisdiction whose legal practices had been disrupted by a major disaster to practice law on a temporary basis in an unaffected jurisdiction. To see the status of State Implementation of this rule you may view this resource: Chart - State Implementation of ABA Model Court Rule on Provision of Legal Services Following Determination of Major Disaster
The Young Lawyers Division ("YLD") of the American Bar Association, as well as the YLD of most state bar associations, works closely with FEMA immediately following a disaster to provide legal assistance to those in need of help (see the ABA/FEMA Memorandum of Understanding). The YLD Disaster Legal Services Program provides immediate temporary legal assistance to disaster survivors at no charge.
The ABA Center for Pro Bono's website has a downloadable Disaster Legal Services Manual prepared by the State Bar of California's California Program Development Unit of the Office of Legal Services.
ABA Free Legal Answers - The national pro bono legal advice portal serves as a critical resource for disaster survivors, providing vital assistance regarding accessing FEMA benefits, disaster-related social security and unemployment benefits, contractor fraud and others legal needs.
If you need legal assistance in the time of disaster, the ABA YLD offers Disaster Legal Hotlines.
The ABA Standing Committee on Disaster Response and Preparedness is committed to educating lawyers, bar associations and the justice system to prepare for and respond to disasters.
The ABA Center for Pro Bono's Knowledge Center contains additional materials concerning disaster assistance projects, including manuals for the provision of disaster legal assistance. For more information, please email the Center for Pro Bono.