Legal Aid: Continuing to Close the Justice Gap

Earlier this fall, the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County (LAFSBC) marked its 65th anniversary with an early evening gathering at the Anchor Rose in Santa Barbara Harbor. LAFSBC – which works tirelessly to close the justice gap for low-income residents in the area – took the occasion to make note of its own history. 

“It’s an exciting milestone for us as an organization, a moment for us to celebrate with our board members and supporters,” said Executive Director Jennifer Smith. 

Six and a half decades is indeed quite an accomplishment in the never-ending endeavor to ensure equal access to justice for people of all income levels. The growth of the organization over the years reflects its importance in balancing the scales of justice by providing free legal services for those confronted with eviction or other landlord-tenant dispute, for those who may require a civil domestic violence restraining order, for those facing immigration problems, and other issues.

“We started with a single part-time attorney and a part-time secretary, with pro bono (volunteer) attorneys taking the majority of cases. Today, we have 12 attorney positions, three administrative staff members, and more than half a dozen other legal support staff, totaling more than 20 employees countywide,” Smith said. “Our attorneys are graduates of highly respected law schools and two of them have over 30 years of legal experience. It’s incredible to reflect on that and just think about how things have grown and changed over the years. But despite our growth and changes over the years, the demand for our services is overwhelming and there’s still a huge unmet need.”

The numbers tell the story. 

“We just got some data that estimates that in the state of California, there’s only one civil legal aid attorney for every 5,000 eligible people,” Smith said. “Our attorneys average 100 cases per year, but that leaves a lot left over.” 

Indeed, a 2019 study from the California State Bar indicated that while nearly 40% of low-income Californians who sought legal help reached out to legal aid organizations, the system was only able to fully resolve 30% of the problems presented to them. And while State Bar-funded legal aid organizations employed approximately 1,500 attorneys and leveraged pro bono services from 16,000 others, an estimated additional 9,000 full-time legal aid attorneys would be needed to fill the service gap and fully resolve all civil legal problems experienced by low-income Californians.

“The need is critical,” Smith said. “The sad fact is that LAFSBC has to turn away potential clients who are qualified simply due to a lack of resources and personnel.”

Smith said Legal Aid does its best to deal with the shortfall by prioritizing just a few legal issues that are the most pressing for individuals and critical for our community, focusing on areas that involve people’s shelter, safety and wellbeing. Even within those limited areas of civil law, the organization prioritizes certain types of cases. 

“In housing, we put a lot of attention on eviction defense because in addition to helping the individual or family, it also involves homelessness prevention,” Smith said. “In our domestic violence work, we prioritize restraining orders where safety is at risk.” 

In some ways, the problem is even bigger, because in addition to the lack of sufficient legal providers, there’s also what the study called a “knowledge gap,” which Smith said shows up in different ways. 

“Someone may not recognize that the problem they’re facing is one that involves a legal issue where a lawyer could help,” she said. “Even if they realize that, they might not be aware of what civil legal aid is and how it can help. “

That’s particularly true in Santa Barbara County, which has a relatively large immigrant population, which can create its own set of roadblocks, Smith said. 

“Depending on where they come from, there may be distrust of legal systems in general and fear of engaging with the legal system at all, which adds another layer. With our limited resources, it’s challenging all around.” 

LAFSBC is working to close the knowledge gap as a way to remove barriers to closing the justice gap, Smith said, pointing out programs for community outreach and collaboration with other trusted nonprofit organizations – where someone linking Legal Aid to the individual in need serves as a kind of conduit to LAFSBC’s work. 

And the organization does its best to at least offer some help to all who might need its services; if not through actual representation then via its self-help Legal Resource Center. These exist at three county courthouses and are staffed by a California licensed attorney, and are open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. Assistance is offered in the completion of legal and court documents for various civil matters and infractions, and in properly presenting your case to the court, including small claims and name changes. 

“They’re not able to provide full scope representation or legal advice, but they are facilitating filling out forms properly, which helps people get access to and navigate the justice system effectively,” Smith said. “It’s not as in-depth but they can do a higher volume of work.”

LAFSBC’s Project Outreach offers “advice only” outreach from volunteer lawyers at community centers in Santa Barbara and Goleta, with attorneys who specialize in general civil law, immigration law, or consumer and landlord-tenant law. Legal Aid also has volunteer lawyers providing no-cost information about Chapter 7 bankruptcy, bankruptcy forms, and referrals for other consumer debt issues on a weekly basis. Its senior outreach program offers those over 60 attorney advice and information during a 30-minute consultation.

Following the election, Smith said LAFSBC is also “gearing up” to revive its family preparedness clinics that first opened in 2017 to assist on a variety of immigration-related issues, including, for example, having a plan in case the principal wage earner faces deportation, Smith said. 

“It’s almost like estate planning, but on the immigration side. Very basic stuff to be ready if that happens,” she said. “We are going to collaborate with other nonprofit and legal service providers to help ensure that the immigrant community has access.” 

The organization is also working to continue to build capacity and programs with volunteer attorneys to help reduce the unmet need in the community. Securing funding is an ongoing priority. Philanthropists and donors are, in many ways, needed to step-up more than ever. 

“We’re concerned about potential cuts to federal dollars that fund legal aid, particularly in light of the fact that we’re also facing a state budget crisis,” Smith said. “Because we are a nonprofit, we’re not a government entity. We’ve always relied on the support and the goodwill of our local community and will continue to do so.” 

Visit https://lafsbc.org for more information