Introduction:
Access to justice has been defined in a variety of ways and often encompasses a breadth of issues. The definition provided by Community Legal Education of Ontario (CLEO) is as follows: “access to justice exists when people can pursue their goals and address their law-related problems in ways that are consistent with fair legal standards and processes; and can obtain, understand, and act on information and services related to the law, where necessary, to achieve just outcomes.”[1]
Drawing on research conducted by the Canadian Forum on Civil Justice, it is now understood that civil legal problems are prevalent in many people’s everyday lives. It is also well-recognized that social disadvantage can amplify both the prevalence and risk of experiencing legal problems, often occurring in clusters.[2] As such, efforts to improve access to justice must actively engage with users of the justice system and address and remain responsive to the particular and evolving barriers that members of the public face.[3] As such, the access to justice crisis cannot be resolved with a one-size-fits-all approach. Instead, a justice strategy should adopt a pluralistic and multi-dimensional approach to the institutions of law and justice.[4]
Users of the justice system may face interlocking, multi-faceted challenges related to education, health, housing, homelessness, child welfare, and civil rights violations. These interlocking challenges may lead to multiple and frequent visits to seek resolutions for various issues. Individuals often lack both the resources and time needed to get from one agency to another. Professor Rebecca Sandefur also highlights that a reason individuals do not seek assistance from lawyers or courts is because they do not perceive these situations to be legal.[5] In many instances, individuals try to solve their problems in a variety of ways on their own before a lawyer even gets involved. Consequently, clients grappling with multiple challenges frequently reach out to programs ill-equipped to assist them, regularly forcing multiple stops and duplicating services. This not only robs clients of time and resources but it significantly delays access to justice.
Recognizing that people have complex problems with legal and non-legal dimensions, an integrated hub that addresses a range of social needs by leveraging legal services and expertise may serve a vital role in improving and sustaining access to justice in the long term. In Philadelphia, a group of civil legal aid non-profit organizations have adopted this same approach to construct a long-term and viable solution to serve clients and amplify cost savings for legal aid organizations.[6]
A One-Stop-Shop:
Philadelphia’s Equal Justice Center (EJC) is an emerging non-profit center that strives to elevate national standards for efficiency and collaboration to provide free and low-cost legal services for community members.[7] The EJC aims to provide social services and civil legal aid services under one roof as a one-stop-shop for legal assistance while concurrently serving as a new ideal for delivering civil legal aid services. By housing over 20 civil legal aid non-profits, co-location will allow the EJC to deliver more client-centered services, distribute resources towards providing such services, and create cooperative interactions that improve efficiency among participating organizations.[8] Examples of agencies that have an affiliation with the EJC include: AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania, Center for Advocacy for the Rights & Interests of the Elderly (CARIE), Consumer Bankruptcy Assistance Project (CBAP), Esperanza Immigration Legal Services, Homeless Advocacy Project (HAP), Pennsylvania Health Law Project (PHLP), WOAR: Philadelphia Center Against Sexual Violence, and Youth Sentencing & Re-entry Project (YSRP).[9]
Individuals accessing civil legal aid services may require assistance and support in other areas of their lives, including with acquiring and maintaining employment, immigration status, abuse, and violence. The EJC model provides clients with concurrent access to necessary legal aid services and social supports. The ability to adequately address interlocking legal needs and social issues may serve as a life-changing avenue for clients seeking multiple vital support services. The model plans to parallel an emergency room at a hospital, including providing a single-entry point to triage immediate legal needs while providing various legal services under one roof.[10] This model of streamlined access to legal aid services and social supports has the potential to transform the capacity of legal aid systems to improve and sustain operations while adequately addressing legal needs.
Improved Efficiency, Collaboration, and Awareness:
Legal aid organizations generally maintain independent operations, and intake procedures are often vulnerable to chronic under-funding. This arrangement hinders the potential to address client needs for the long-term sustainably. The EJC model allows both clients and legal aid non-profits to benefit from the synergies created through collaboration. This is particularly the case, given that the collective goals of both entities include reducing expenses, effectively serving clients, and building sustainable resources to increase available services. The EJC model is a practical approach to equip legal aid organizations with the resources and capacity needed to improve client services while securing resources to sustain staffing and programming.[11]
Given that the EJC houses multiple legal service providers specializing in different areas of expertise, the model also allows lawyers from different organizations to engage in extensive collaboration. Through combining their expertise, lawyers can develop strategies to improve and advocate for access to justice while servicing individual clients dealing with overlapping legal needs.[12]
The EJC model further provides a central hub for the city’s larger legal community, providing a forum for developing and advocating for pro bono opportunities, awarding public interest awards and fellowships, and providing an interactive space to learn more about vital legal aid advocacy issues and challenges. Collaboration between the non-profit community, law schools, and the for-profit legal community ultimately advance efforts to raise awareness and enhance the provision of legal aid services and engagement.[13]
A Virtual Transition:
As the COVID-19 pandemic ultimately prevented the Philadelphia EJC from moving forward as scheduled with plans for a physical location, the EJC’s vision has been translated into virtual initiatives.[14] While the Philadelphia EJC remains committed to operating at a physical location soon, it has recently pivoted to adopt a range of virtual initiatives. These virtual initiatives have strived to improve remote collaboration while adopting a tailored commitment to center racial justice as a critical avenue for improving access to justice. Despite the challenges introduced by the pandemic, shifting to a virtual setting has facilitated many advantages for the EJC model and legal aid service delivery more generally, particularly with regards to improving efforts to deliver services, enhancing equity and justice, and expanding partnerships without limitations of physical space or geography.[15]
Through assessing the data processes of social service and legal aid providers, the EJC is currently undertaking an initiative to develop a virtual centralized intake and referral network. The EJC is also in the process of exploring the development and deployment of community-based justice navigators to broaden the referral network, which includes receiving support from volunteers, para-professionals trained by legal aid, and social service practitioners. The EJC also plans to launch a legal incubator in partnership with local law schools and funders to equip future legal professionals with the tools needed to improve access to justice for lower-middle-income communities, particularly immigrant and minority neighbourhoods. As the COVID-19 pandemic has increasingly forced the legal profession to embrace the use of digital platforms, the EJC is assessing launching mobile units to bring legal and social services directly into lower-middle-income neighbourhoods- similar to blood and bookmobiles.[16]
A Model for Enhancing Access to Justice:
“When a legal problem is successfully addressed and resolved, both the client and the whole community benefit from the resulting improvement in family stability, safe housing, educational opportunities, health care, new or continued employment, increase income for food and clothing, and more.”[17]
The Philadelphia EJC’s one-stop-shop model provides a useful approach to improve the delivery of civil legal aid services in Philadelphia. The model is foundationally rooted in an emphasis on innovation, collaboration, and accelerated community impact. As the COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the access to justice crisis, the need for enhanced legal aid services must remain linked to integrated service delivery.
By Humna Wasim
CFCJ Research Assistant
Osgoode Hall Law School Juris Doctor Candidate
[1] Julie Matthews and David Wiseman, “Community Justice Help: Advancing Community-Based Access to Justice: A Discussion Paper” (July 2020), online: Community Legal Education Ontario < https://cleoconnect.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Community-Justice-Help-Advancing-Community-Based-Access-to-Justice_discussion-paper-July-2020.pdf>.
[2] T.C.W. Farrow, A. Currie, N. Aylwin, L. Jacobs, D. Northrup and L. Moore, “Everyday Legal Problems and the Cost of Justice in Canada: Overview Report” (2016), online: Canadian Forum on Civil Justice <https://www.cfcj-fcjc.org/sites/default/files//Everyday%20Legal%20Problems%20and%20the%20Cost%20of%20Justice%20in%20Canada%20-%20Overview%20Report.pdf>.
[3] Trevor C.W. Farrow, “What is Access to Justice?” (2014) 51:3 Osgoode Hall LJ 957 at 962.
[4] Ibid at 969.
[5] Rebecca L. Sandefur, “Accessing Justice in the Contemporary USA: Findings from the community needs and services study.” (2014), online: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign <http://www.americanbarfoundation.org/uploads/cms/documents/sandefur_accessing_justice_in_the_contemporary_usa._aug._2014.pdf>.
[6] Philadelphia Bar Foundation, “Transforming the capacity and operation of Philadelphia’s civil legal aid system,” (2021), online: Equal Justice Center <https://www.philaequaljusticecenter.org/impact>.
[7] Pro Bono Institute, “Your One-Stop Shop for Access to Justice: New Nonprofit Center Dedicated to the Philadelphia Legal Aid Community,” (June 17, 2019), online: The PBEye <http://thepbeye.probonoinst.org/2019/06/17/your-one-stop-shop-for-access-to-justice-new-nonprofit-center-dedicated-to-the-philadelphia-legal-aid-community/>.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Supra, note 6.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Vaughn Johnson, “The Philadelphia Bar Foundation aims to use enhanced technology in the fight for social justice” (Feb 27, 2021), online: Philadelphia Eagles <https://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/news/equal-justice-center>.
[15] Supra, note 6.
[16] Supra, note 14.
[17] Supra, note 6.
