News Story (Connecticut, NATIONAL)
Dave Collins
Associated Press (AP)
March 30, 2016
READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Tags: Civil Right to Counsel, Justice for All
Organizations mentioned/involved: National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (NCCRC), Greater Hartford Legal Aid (GHLA), Public Justice Center (PJC), SeniorLaw Center (PA)
DETAILS
flood of poor defendants representing themselves — often ineffectively — in dire cases involving eviction, foreclosure, child custody and involuntary commitment has led to a push in legislatures to expand rights to free lawyers in certain civil proceedings.
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“When your basic human needs are at stake, you should have a lawyer to protect those needs,” said John Pollock, a lawyer with the Public Justice Center who coordinates the national coalition. “The consequences are too great.”
The spike in self-represented defendants stems from the Great Recession, which not only created new waves of foreclosure, eviction, debt collection and bankruptcy cases, but also hindered people’s ability to pay for lawyers, judges and lawyers say. Such cases have overwhelmed and slowed court dockets, judges say.