“Justice is the truth in action”; this is what the wall of one particular courtroom in a New York State Supreme Courthouse reads but for many of the low-income individuals who enter that courtroom their experience of the truth and of justice are not so inextricably linked. This isn’t to say that justice isn’t, in fact, the truth in action. Perhaps it is. It is just that in the cases of many of these individuals, the truth will never be presented in a courtroom; therefore justice cannot be served. There are many reasons for the “justice gap” in our country. Lack of knowledge of the law and of the rights that are afforded through it, high lawyer fees and low funding for organizations that provide free legal services as well as the overcrowded court calendar, to name a few.

Despite its shortcomings though, the court system is a magnificent tool that can provide struggling individuals with invaluable relief. An order from a court can be the difference between a family keeping their apartment and becoming homeless; it can provide safety for a mother and her children who have long suffered abuse; it can protect a vulnerable consumer from predatory creditors; it can give a crime victim back their peace of mind or exonerate someone wrongfully accused. This country’s courts can prove a great ally to low-income individuals provided they are able to navigate its intimidatingly complex systems.

This is where social workers come in. As social workers we are obligated to combat inequalities like this one, to fill “gaps” in justice. To fill this gap, we must be savvy and creative. We are not lawyers, yet we have a role in this fight nonetheless. We must empower our clients in the face of injustice and together create solutions to problems that have plagued our country for too long. It is this site’s goal to assist social workers in doing just that.

THE STATS

In 2010, 2011 and 2012, 1.2 million low-income families (living at or below 200% of the federal poverty line) in New York had multiple civil legal problems for which they received no legal representation. About 20% of all those seeking assistance  ended up with representation.

The statistics are similiar nationally. Read a report here. State by State analysis can be found here.