The Need

In the time it will take you to read the information on this page, another person in the United States will have become the victim of a violent crime.

It’s about access to justice.

1 in 5 people in the United States qualify for free legal help, but studies show that 50% to 80% of those seeking legal help will be turned away due to lack of resources.

In 1985, Justice Thurgood Marshall of the United States Supreme Court, in the majority opinion for the case of Ake v. Oklahoma, wrote, “[m]ere access to the courthouse doors does not by itself assure a proper functioning of the adversary process.”  For victims it starts with the right to tell their story, but also includes the right to access the courts, to have their cases heard, and to access legal remedies that provide for their safety and empowerment.

It’s about safety. It’s about empowerment.

For victims, especially victims of intimate partner violence, access to legal representation is limited.  But legal representation is critical for two reasons: (1) The legal process is the one forum in which the victim can safely confront the perpetrator, and (2) the victim can be empowered and supported to hold the perpetrator accountable.

Yet access to legal assistance is limited.  Nationally, only about 11% of intimate partner violence programs are able to provide legal representation.

Legal representation has remained within the top three unmet needs for victims.