The contentious history and chronic underfunding of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) are so familiar to LSC supporters (including the State Bar) that it's not a surprising that this basic important truth about the program often goes unnoticed: LSC is one of the most successful public-private partnerships in our nation. At a time when public-private partnerships are being touted as an innovative and powerful answer to many of our most pressing public funding problems, it's important to drive this point home. Esther Larden, President and CEO of the Pro Bono Institute, drives the point home in the National Law Journal:
[LSC] funds leverage substantial additional funding from other sources, and its grantees, through pro bono, leverage millions of hours of pro bono service. If Legal Services Corp. funding diminishes, pro bono service, despite its current momentum, will decline steeply as well. Our legal pro bono efforts are the envy of the rest of the world. Congress needs to understand that cutting funding for legal services will stop the flow of valuable and free private assistance. This proposed funding cut not only threatens the very core of access to justice; it is economically unwise.
Here's what happened to LSC funding in the House, "Federal Funding for Legal Aid Takes 18% Hit in House Budget". Tell your Congressional representative and Senators about the importance of this great public-private partnership. The State Bar's Public Policy Resource Center can help.
