{"id":10047,"date":"2017-09-22T00:55:45","date_gmt":"2017-09-22T00:55:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=10047"},"modified":"2017-09-23T00:58:12","modified_gmt":"2017-09-23T00:58:12","slug":"every-year-millions-try-to-navigate-us-courts-without-a-lawyer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/every-year-millions-try-to-navigate-us-courts-without-a-lawyer\/","title":{"rendered":"Every year, millions try to navigate US courts without a lawyer"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lauren Sudeall Lucas<\/a>, Georgia State University<\/a><\/em> and Darcy Meals<\/a>, Georgia State University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Judge Richard A. Posner, a legendary judicial figure, retired abruptly earlier this month to make a point: People without lawyers are mistreated in the American legal system.<\/p>\n

In one of his final opinions<\/a> as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, he expressed frustration<\/a> at the dismissal of one self-represented litigant\u2019s lawsuit, writing that the prisoner, Michael Davis, \u201cneeds help \u2013 needs it bad \u2013 needs a lawyer desperately.\u201d <\/p>\n

Unfortunately, Davis\u2019s circumstances are far from unique. Many lower-income people have no lawyer to help them navigate the legal system, either in civil or criminal cases. <\/p>\n

Eighty percent<\/a> of state criminal defendants cannot afford to pay for a lawyer, and only those who are actually incarcerated are constitutionally entitled to appointed counsel. Many people facing misdemeanor charges can, if convicted, be subjected to significant fines and fees, or face the loss of benefits (including housing) or deportation. Yet, they have no right to an attorney<\/a>, and those who cannot afford a lawyer will go without one. <\/p>\n

Unlike in the criminal context, there\u2019s no federal constitutional right to counsel in civil cases<\/a>. Civil cases can involve a range of critical issues, including housing, public benefits, child custody and domestic violence. And while some civil litigants may be entitled to counsel in certain jurisdictions, in most of these cases, people who cannot afford a lawyer will be forced to go it alone. Doing so may mean that they fail to make it through the process, have their case dismissed or lose what otherwise would have been a winning case. <\/p>\n

As directors of the Center for Access to Justice<\/a> at Georgia State University College of Law, we agree with Judge Posner. People like Michael Davis desperately need help. Without legal assistance, their issues will likely be unresolved or, worse, wrongly resolved against them.<\/p>\n

Unrepresented<\/h1>\n

In some states, as many as 80 to 90 percent of litigants are unrepresented<\/a>, even though their opponent has a lawyer. The number of these \u201cpro se litigants\u201d has risen substantially<\/a> in the last decade, due in part to the economic downturn<\/a> and the relationship between poor economic conditions and issues like housing and domestic relations. <\/p>\n

The Legal Services Corporation, the single largest funder of civil legal aid for low-income Americans in the nation, reported in June<\/a> that 86 percent of low-income Americans receive inadequate or no professional legal help for the civil legal problems they face. Here in Georgia, state courts heard more than 800,000 cases<\/a> involving self-represented litigants in 2016 alone.<\/p>\n

In some types of cases, not having counsel can make a dramatic difference. Take the example of low-income tenants facing eviction. Across the county, roughly 90 percent<\/a> of landlords are represented by counsel, while 90 percent of tenants are not. Simply having a lawyer increases the odds of being able to stay in one\u2019s home. When tenants represent themselves in New York City, they are evicted in nearly 50 percent of cases. With a lawyer, they win 90 percent of the time<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Navigating the system<\/h1>\n

Why is having a lawyer so important? The reality is that even the most mundane legal matters can require dozens of steps and complex maneuvering.<\/p>\n

In one study, researchers identified almost 200 discrete tasks<\/a> that self-represented litigants must perform in civil cases \u2013 from finding the right court to interpreting the law, filing motions, compiling evidence and negotiating a settlement. Some of these tasks require specialized knowledge of the law and of the court system. Almost all require time away from work and caring for children. Many also require the ability to get to the courthouse, to read and to speak English or access a translator.<\/p>\n

The Access to Justice Lab<\/a> at Harvard Law School has also tracked how labyrinthine the justice system can be. Just starting a routine process \u2013 like establishing a legal guardian for a minor<\/a> \u2013 can take many steps, and even these can vary in unexpected ways, given the natural variation among judges and the particulars of a specific case.<\/p>\n

Regardless of the type of case, missing just one step<\/a> could mean you have to start the process all over again or even cause the case to be dismissed, sometimes without the option to refile.<\/p>\n

People often quip that there are far too many lawyers. Yet the reality is that, while there are a lot of lawyers in certain geographic areas and certain specialties, in many rural areas \u2013 sometimes referred to as \u201clegal deserts\u201d \u2013 there are actually far too few lawyers. <\/p>\n

Our center<\/a> recently published a map<\/a> of Georgia\u2019s legal deserts. In our state, there are five counties without any lawyers at all and another 59 with 10 lawyers or fewer. <\/p>\n