To navigate through the inherent legal entanglements, you sometimes need professional legal help which is expensive. Fortunately, the legal profession offers qualified attorneys who volunteer their services through a community legal aid organization or pro bono work for individuals. LawHelp.org is an organization that works with these free or low-cost organizations and refers them to people who need legal help. Its website offers people who need help dealing with their legal problems links to locate legal aid organizations in their area. Basically, any legal assistance that single mothers require can be found by following the links provided on the LawHelp.org website.
Legal Services Corporation (LSC)
For single mothers whose income is at or below 125% of the Federal Poverty Level, Legal Service Corporation may be the much-needed answer to your legal problems. LSC is a nonprofit corporation that funds legal assistance to low-income individuals through more than 850 offices across the U.S. More than 50 million people are eligible for service and the program closes more than 900,000 cases per year. More than 70% percent of clients served by LSC programs are women. LSC also handles cases related to housing problems and foreclosures. Assistance offered includes foreclosure prevention, loan workouts, and landlord-tenant disputes. Assistance is also available to single mothers facing eviction from a rental unit because the owner is facing foreclosure.
Legal aid clinics
There are countless reasons why single mothers need legal representation. From the beginning, lawyers are very expensive, but some situations do not allow single mothers to represent themselves. As a single mother, you can get legal help from a law school. Depending on the state in which you reside, law students may volunteer for programs to help people who require legal advice. Visit the website of the law school in your area to see what free or low-cost legal services they offer. Whenever you find yourself in a situation where you need legal advice, any help is welcome. If you live in a locality where there is no law school, contact your local community college. They usually sponsor legal aid clinics to benefit the local community. People who attend legal aid clinics can bring their legal problems to the attention of volunteers. If volunteers can’t help them, they can at least help you find low-cost or even free legal assistance from other sources.
Legal help without a lawyer
Many single mothers cannot afford to pay for legal assistance in their budget. Fortunately, there are other methods of handling legal dilemmas other than going to court. Identify your problem and once you are convinced that legal redress is required, contact the local law enforcement agency that is mandated to deal with such a crisis. If the agency can’t help you, they can refer you to a local branch of government that can help you resolve the problem. You can also contact your local department of social services and ask if you qualify for legal assistance. If you don’t qualify, ask if they can direct you to some other source. If the situation goes beyond these circumstances and you find that you need a lawyer to represent you, ask the agency involved with your legal problem if they can recommend lawyers you can afford.
Free or Low Cost Legal Advice
child support services
These services are absolutely free and are administered on behalf of your children. Child support offices have their own attorneys or work closely with state prosecutors to find the best course of legal action for your case.
Department of Children’s Services (DCS)
This is the place to go when your children’s rights are being violated in any way. DCS can help you get the child out of that situation and at the same time help you in court in the best interest of your children. Their legal provisions are free, but they only handle cases involving the welfare of your children.
Other places where you can get free or low-cost advice include the State Bar, your local women’s shelter, and the legal services corporation whose website is lsc.gov.