The Maine Justice Foundation has learned from the National Legal Aid and Defender Association and the American Bar Association that there is a hit list of programs that President Trump might eliminate to trim domestic spending, including the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). Maine’s recipient of LSC funds is Pine Tree Legal Assistance.
In 2016, 24% of Pine Tree’s projected operating budget came from LSC funds, supporting work in all 16 counties. Staff handled more than 7,400 cases affecting 18,000 Maine residents. 38% of completed cases involved full legal representation (rather than advice or limited representation). The Pine Tree client prevailed in 96% of those matters.
Call to Action
Please contact “your” members of the Maine Congressional Delegation to let them know how critical LSC funding is to access to justice in Maine and to underscore the critical work that Pine Tree Legal Assistance does to serve rural communities, veterans, victims of domestic abuse and natural disasters. Thank them for their past support of LSC, and ask them to step up their support during this precarious time.
For more information about the unfolding budget process at the federal level, contact information for members of our Congressional Delegation, and a statement by the President of the American Bar Association, please click on the call-to-action PDF below.
Click to download the Call-To-Action