There are a whole lot of people who need legal assistance who can't afford or don't have access to lawyers. One response to this problem is a proposal to license trained "legal technicians" to perform some tasks currently performed only by lawyers. The July 2008 issue of the Washington State Bar News has a special feature on the issue:
- Legal Technicians: Helpful or Harmful? (editor's note)
- A Rationale for the Proposed Legal Technicians Limited Practice Rule, by Gregory R. Dallaire
- The Washington State Supreme Court Should Decline to Adopt the Family Law Legal Technician Proposal, by Mark A. Johnson and David S. Heller
- Legal Technicians: Myths and Facts, by Rita L. Bender and Paul A. Bastine
- Legal Technicians Aren't the Answer: The Family Law Section's Executive Committee Weighs In, by Jean Cotton
The Practice of Law Board's report (from Jan. 2008) is here.
Do you have an opinion? Tell the Board of Governors before its Aug. 1 meeting, when this is on the agenda.
1 comment:
The first sentence here; "There are a lot of people who..." is an understatement. How significant is this understatement in introducing the idea of legal technicians? In my opinion it is extremely important. For example, "alot" could me 20% or it could mean 80%. Correct? Correct.
There are so many people who need help, legal help, and counseling of many kinds that it's shameful. The U.S. society, and the Seattle community is far from serving the best of it's individuals, which are the core productive elements. Those without a college degree will simply not even begin to understand the "legal system" and yet they are both dependent upon it as well as victimized by it, e.g. not knowing the law doesn't exempt you from following it. But, how can a woman who needs a divorce begin? How can a man uphold the law when he doesn't know it! Let's get real, people. Any education and help we can begin to offer soon is better than what we have in place now!
Best regards, Joseph E. McCluskey
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