As courts have moved to remote access due to the COVID-19 pandemic, new issues have emerged for SRLs, including but not limited to the following: Lack of tech support Lack of devices Limited data and phone minutes Spotty internet access Slow internet spee ...

This report is intended to help access to justice commissions take advantage of the high visibility of the commission movement and the many successful commission initiatives across the country. By leveraging this general level of support into ongoing stab ...

This report summarizes the findings of the 2002 Task Force based on its review of current trends and initiatives related to self-represented litigation. Briefly, the Task Force found that recent increases in the number of self-represented litigants – alth ...

In this 2000 White Paper, a COSCA sub-committee notes that self-represented litigants are by no means a new phenomenon in the courts. However, the then recent surge in self-represented litigation was unprecedented and shows no signs of abating. While no s ...

This report seeks to illuminate one particular aspect of the legal aid landscape: the confluence of social work services and civil legal services, which can often be siloed into separate and fragmented service delivery systems. The idea of removing the bo ...

In February of 2021, the Conference of Chief Justices and the Conference of State Court Administrators adopted Resolution 2 In Support of Continuing Efforts to Meet Civil Legal Needs. After extensive findings setting out the need, especially during the CO ...

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us all to confront the reality that providing legal services remotely is not only necessary to meet the needs of clients, but it is also in the best interest of public health and reducing the risk of infection. Meeting wit ...

The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted court operations across the country, prompting judges to postpone nonessential proceedings and conduct others through video or phone. Even as courts have to reopen, many continued or tested new ways to expand the use of rem ...

Published in 2018, this report provides a path forward to help courts use existing technologies to improve the user experience, particularly for those people who choose to represent themselves. Among the report’s detailed recommendations are: Ensure court ...

During the COVID-19 pandemic, courts endeavored to find ways to operate safely and ensure that essential proceedings continued. In many jurisdictions, this involved quickly setting up remote or virtual courts, using meeting technologies such as Zoom or Go ...