F.A.Q. (Frequently Asked Questions)
General Information
How can I contact Access Justice?
You can reach us in multiple ways – by telephone, directly through our website, by email and by regular mail. Go to contact us.
What is the Access Justice service area?
We currently offer services only in Minnesota and mostly in the Twin Cities metro area. However, we do have some attorneys that are in Greater Minnesota. Please contact us or fill out and send an Eligibility Form and a Request for Legal Services form to see if we will be able to help you.
Can you help people who don’t speak English?
¡Si! En Access Justice tenemos personal para atender a clientes hispanos En Español
Access Justice is collaborating with community organizations to be able to offer legal assistance to people who speak other languages. Please contact us to see how we can serve you.
Do you compete with other existing public interest law efforts?
Our intent is not to compete with any other public interest law firms, and certainly not with private firms, who provide valuable legal services to other unserved individuals and organizations — who need and deserve them. Our mission is to provide quality and affordable legal representation to unserved clients at no cost or at significantly reduced rates/fees. Read more about our rates and see our Representation Policy for more information.
Instead of competition, what is your approach?
In short, collaboration. At Access Justice, we are intent upon collaborating with other public interest organizations whenever possible. At the same time, many such organizations do not offer direct or full legal services, are issue-specific, and/or are already over-burdened. AJ will both complement and supplement their efforts in many ways.
Can you direct me to other community legal resources?
There are quite a few community organizations that are performing wonderful service for the tens of thousands of people who have difficulty getting the help that they need. As noted, Access Justice is not here to compete with those organizations, but to fill in where there are gaps in available legal services for unserved clients (i.e., poor, distressed and underpriveleged individuals, disadvantaged minorities, and 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organizations). For a partial listing of some of these fine non-profits, go to collaboration under Re:Sources.
How can I make a referral?
You can refer a client or acquaintance to Access Justice in two ways.
First, you can have the person and/or group contact us, or direct them to our website, where they can learn about Access Justice and submit an Eligibility Form and a Request for Legal Services Form.
Second, you may contact us yourself, and request that we contact the person. You should only use this method if you are very sure the person to be contacted wants to receive Access Justice’s services, or if the person is with you and can answer questions while you talk to us on the phone or fill out forms online for them.
What kinds of cases does Access Justice take?
Access Justice is a full service public interest law firm. That means that we offer quality assistance across a broad spectrum of legal issues. Please review our List of Services. We focus on helping people and organizations that can’t get legal services anyplace else (either free or through private attorneys) to help them solve legal problems affecting their lives.
Because of Access Justice’s emphasis on social justice, we will devote extra resources to cases in that broad area, such as civil and human rights matters.
I don’t see my problem listed. Does that mean you won’t help me?
Contact us! We did not list all of our areas of service because there are so many. So that we may fully assess your request, it is best to fill out and submit both the Eligibility Form and the Request for Legal Services Form. We may be able to assist you.
Does Access Justice take personal injury or medical malpractice cases?
No. There are many lawyers who take these kinds of cases on a “contingency” basis. That means you only have to pay if you win, and the payment is a certain percentage of the award that you get.
So, since almost everyone can get an attorney to help with a personal injury case without having to pay any money up front, Access Justice attorneys are generally not needed for these cases. Our focus is on helping people who can’t get the legal help they need and deserve anywhere else on a wide range of basic legal issues.
How do I decide if I need a lawyer?
Do I need a lawyer to pursue a claim or resolve an issue?
No, but… most of life’s important decisions, such as those involving people’s homes, health care, credit and critically needed support, often have hidden pitfalls. Not reviewing these issues and seeking assistance from a qualified professional can have disastrous consequences.
Most people know that lawyers can help you when you go to court. However, lawyers can also help prevent problems (see Proactive Legal Services and below) before they turn into headaches and major heartaches. Also, many lawyers, besides knowing how best to apply the law to help you, are also skilled mediators and negotiators. Why wouldn’t you want a good one that’s affordable on your side?
When should I get a lawyer?
1) First, you should immediately talk to a lawyer if you get any kind of legal notice with a date. Missing deadlines usually causes serious consequences. Secondly, you should consider at least talking with a lawyer if you see legal trouble brewing (for example, if someone is threatening you with legal action (see Proactive Legal Services and below).
More generally:
At Access Justice, we encourage people to pursue Proactive Legal Services, so that we can work with you to prevent time consuming, unnecessarily costly and aggravating legal battles. Of course, if needed and appropriate, we can and will fight for your rights in court.
2) Before or as you make a major decision, such as:
When you make a major purchase on contract, such as a car, home, etc.
3) Before or as you write something you want to be legally binding, such as:
A will, a health care directive, a contract, etc.
4) Before you sign something that might be legally binding, such as:
- An employment contract, purchase contract, purchase agreement, etc.
- (Indeed, you should get a lawyer’s advice before you sign any contract that’s important to you.)
I’m still not sure if I should seek legal advice. What should I do?
Contact us! Access Justice will briefly consider your issue and suggest options. Instead, you may want to submit the Eligibility Form and the Request for Legal Services Form.
I just have a quick question. Will someone at Access Justice help me?
Contact us! Access Justice will listen to your concerns and suggest legal assistance that may be available to help you to avoid or at least minimize a costly legal battle.
What is it really going to cost?
Only as much as you are prepared to specifically commit to Access Justice to help resolve your legal issues. In different situations that might be a retainer which establishes (1) a flat fee; (2) an amount of money at a specified, reduced hourly rate based upon a certain number of hours of work; or (3) a reduced hourly rate fee. In every instance, a signed retainer will be required in order to establish a formal attorney-client relationship.
Am I eligible for legal services from Access Justice?
Our goal is to serve clients that not only can’t get Pro Bono (free) legal services (such as Legal Aid or Public Defender), but also those that can’t afford, typically high, private lawyer fees. Currently, we are giving priority to clients whose family income is between 125% and 350% of the Federal Poverty Line. See Eligibility Guidelines.
If you are a nonprofit group or organization, or a small business, the non-profit itself must be a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization, or the owner of the business must be able to qualify individually as a client of Access Justice.
To see if you are eligible for Access Justice legal services fill out and submit our Eligibility Form and our Request for Legal Services Form. These forms must be reviewed by Access Justice before we represent a potential client.
How do I know if I get free service or will have to pay $99 an hour?
AJ will make the decision very quickly, by using your Eligibility Form and Request for Legal Services Form and then talking with you. Assuming adequate funding for Access Justice’s programs, we estimate that 50-80% of our clients will be eligible for free (Pro Bono) services. If you want to get a rough idea, go to the chart on Eligibility Guidelines. If your income is closer to the 125% amount, you are more likely to be eligible for free services. If your income is closer to the 350% amount, you are more likely to be eligible for the reduced fee of $99 an hour. (Please note that this will only give you a rough idea—since just looking at the chart does not take into account extra expense burdens or additional assets.) For more specific information, refer to our Representation Policy.
Do I ever have to pay more than $99 an hour? Is there some catch?
No catch! Never more than $99 per hour. Never. Also, many clients will be able to secure flat/fixed fees to have us help resolve a particular legal issue or to allow us to review various legal transactions or materials (see below). It is possible that at some future, and currently unforseeable, time we may need to review this policy.
Okay, it’s $99 an hour. Will I have to pay for so many hours that I still can’t afford your legal services?
The first time you see an attorney at Access Justice, the first 15 minutes are always free.
Before we begin to charge you, we will explain what we expect to do in your case, how long we anticipate that will take and what our best estimate is of the likely cost. If, due to the particular situation and circumstances, it appears that more legal work is needed, we will talk with you and together figure out how to proceed effectively and fairly.
At Access Justice, we believe in Proactive Legal Services—preventive legal counsel that emphasizes early engagement of legal representation, allowing you to actually save time, hassle and money. Whenever possible, Access Justice will pursue available and cost-effective mediation or alternative dispute resolution opportunities that can also save you time and expense. If necessary and/or likely to be effective, Access Justice has the capacity to, and will, engage in litigation efforts on a client’s behalf.
We will consider both specific flat fee arrangements and distinct hourly commitments that keep your expense to a reasonable and acceptable level. A retainer amount to cover a certain number of hours, or facets, of our anticipated work or the agreed-upon flat fee is required before Access Justice represents a potential client. See our Representation Policy.
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