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Aug 10, 2009 Litigants become their own lawyers: Hiring an attorney isn't cheap, so these days more people are navigating the justice system themselves. But courtrooms can be tough for amateurs.

QUOTE: Legal service has never come cheap. But lawyers, judges and other experts say that for many people, the recession has made it a nearly impossible expense. So more litigants are navigating the often-bewildering justice system by themselves... But the trend still alarms many observers, who say courtrooms weren't made for amateurs.

 Chicago Tribune
Jul 16, 2009 At Jail in Bagram, A Detainee Protest: Indefinite Incarceration by U.S. at Issue

QUOTE: The prisoners at the largest U.S. detention facility in Afghanistan have refused to leave their cells for at least the past two weeks to protest their indefinite imprisonment, according to lawyers and the families of detainees.

 Washington Post
Apr 22, 2009 After Losing Freedom, Some Immigrants Face Loss of Custody of Their Children

QUOTE: crackdowns against illegal immigrants thrust local courts into transnational custody battles and leave thousands of children in limbo.

 New York Times
Nov 08, 2008 Citing Workload, Public Lawyers Reject New Cases

QUOTE: Public defenders’ offices in at least seven states are refusing to take on new cases or have sued to limit them, citing overwhelming workloads that they say undermine the constitutional right to counsel for the poor...in the most open revolt by public defenders in memory, many of the government-appointed lawyers say that state budget cuts and rising caseloads have pushed them to the breaking point.

 New York Times
Nov 27, 2007 Lawyers step up to help veterans gratis

QUOTE: The approach marks the first time since the Civil War that attorneys have been recruited in large numbers to represent veterans. The lawyers hope their legal expertise will speed consideration of claims and result in better benefits for veterans, Stichman says.

 USA TODAY
Jul 14, 2007 Public Defenders Get Better Marks on Salary

QUOTE: Some poor people accused of federal crimes are represented by full-time federal public defenders who earn salaries, others by court-appointed lawyers who bill by the hour. A new study from an economist at Harvard says there is a surprisingly wide gap in how well the two groups perform.

 New York Times
Feb 01, 2006 Navigating the Maze: U.S. Court Opens Do-It-Yourself Help Desk

QUOTE: ...the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago has launched a program to provide free legal assistance for people in filing pro se federal lawsuits.

 Washington Post
Dec 13, 2005 Rights office finds little amiss: Few discrimination complaints in Seattle upheld

QUOTE: The [City of Seattle-- Ed.] civil rights office isn't an advocate but a fact-finding agency that enforces the laws and helps negotiate settlements in discrimination cases....The burden of proof is on the person who files the complaint.

 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Dec 06, 2005 Welcome to a crueler bankruptcy world

QUOTE: Credit card companies lobbied our country's elected representatives and asked them to pass laws to prevent this. It was a good idea, in theory. In practice, the laws increased bankruptcy attorneys' responsibilities.

 Bankrate.com
Sep 20, 2005 Understanding the new bankruptcy law

QUOTE: The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, designed to curb abusive consumer bankruptcy filings, affects anyone who files for bankruptcy. It went into effect Oct. 17. While there are a few bright spots in the law, the overall picture is dim for consumers deeply in debt.

 Bankrate.com
Sep 27, 2004 Client funds improved, still flawed: Bailing out victims is an empty promise in many states.

QUOTE: ...a National Law Journal investigation found that client security funds, the network of state-run programs designed to reimburse victims of lawyer theft, were essentially an empty promise.

 Law.com
Feb 09, 2004 Report Recommends Strong Program for Pro Se Litigants

QUOTE: "...principle that meaningful access to justice in today’s world means a clear recognition by those involved in the system that many of our constituents want to go it alone when they come to court. Our obligation is to give these citizens the help they want, need and deserve."

 EthicalEsq
Oct 19, 2003 Right to an Attorney Comes at a Price: Minnesota Law Requiring Fees for Public Defenders Is Challenged

QUOTE: Minnesota is one of a growing number of states facing enormous budget deficits that are beginning to charge indigents for their constitutional right to legal representation.

 Washington Post
Feb 13, 2003 Tex. Court's Death Row Debate

QUOTE: But it sheds light on what appears to be a bitter, behind-the-scenes debate in the state's Court of Criminal Appeals about the fairness of the capital punishment system in a state that carries out far more executions than any others.

 Washington Post
Feb 07, 2003 Mexico's death-penalty juncture

QUOTE: Death-penalty opponents and lawyers at home and abroad say the US justice system is largely failing foreign nationals - as well as many poor Americans - charged with capital crimes.

 Christian Science Monitor
Dec 10, 2002 Washington State's Legal Aid Program Challenged: Conservative Group's Suit Has Broad Import for How States Raise Funds to Defend the Needy

QUOTE: ...so-called Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA) programs, which gather up the interest earned on certain client funds that lawyers deposit in banks, amount to an uncompensated government "taking" of the clients' money.

 Washington Post
Nov 07, 2002 Five Major Problems Facing Pro Se Litigants in Court

QUOTE: Troubling rulings, ignored complaints against judges, and negative attitudes toward pro se litigants are a few problems in Superior Courts that create blocks to justice for the general public. More avenues for public participation in court operations and citizen oversight committee's are needed to keep the courts functioning with integrity. The author notes that this modified paper was originally submitted to Saybrook Graduate School in San Francisco, California.

 San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center
Jul 01, 2001 The Poor Man's Capitalist: Hernando De Soto

QUOTE: Throughout the third world, the formal systems of property rights taken for granted in advanced nations simply don't exist....de Soto's barking dogs capture the heart of a profound social problem -- in this case, the persistence of global poverty.

 New York Times
Oct 05, 2000 Court Questions Congress' Limits On Legal Aid Arguments

QUOTE: ...in restricting the type of legal arguments that lawyers in the federally financed legal services program can make on behalf of welfare clients, Congress might have gone too far.

 New York Times