National conclave on unbundled legal services will focus on closing national justice gap
Various stakeholders in the justice system, including members of the judiciary in Colorado and elsewhere, will meet for two days in late October in Denver to explore how the unbundling of legal services might lead to improved access to justice, particularly for low- and moderate-income Americans.
Unbundling, also known as limited scope representation, is a model of providing legal services where the lawyer and client agree at the beginning of the representation that the lawyer will provide certain services and the client separately will address the remaining aspects of the case. During the past 15 years, more than a dozen state and national reports on access to legal services have advocated for the expansion of unbundled legal services.
The conference, which will take place Oct. 26-27 at the University of Denver, is a collaboration between the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services and the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System. It will be the first time in 18 years that the various stakeholders have gathered to examine the national state of unbundled services and what opportunities might lie ahead.
At the conference, national authorities will present best practices and model projects and how technology can be incorporated into the delivering of legal services to expand unbundling. A session will also address ways to better allow lawyers to provide unbundled services within their state rules of ethics and professional conduct.
For many years, limited scope representation has been part of pro bono services, including support for court-based self-help desks and participation in programs, such as ABA Free Legal Answers. However, new research suggests that unbundling of legal services has been used less frequently in fee-based attorney-client arrangements, despite its potential to make legal services more affordable.
ABA adds legal assistance hotline for hurricane victims in U.S. Virgin Islands
Survivors of the hurricanes in the U.S. Virgin Islands can get legal assistance by calling a hotline set up by a partnership among the Disaster Legal Services Program of the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (ABA YLD), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Virgin Islands Bar Association Young Lawyers Division and the Louisiana Civil Justice Center (LCJC).
Widespread infrastructure devastation in the U.S. Virgin Islands made it necessary to host the hotline on the U.S. mainland, so the disaster legal aid hotline is operating through LCJC, which has a longstanding history of providing disaster legal services information to callers.
To access help from volunteer lawyers, disaster victims should call 800-310-7029, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., (Central time) Monday through Friday (messages can be left after hours). When connected, callers should identify that they are seeking disaster-related legal assistance and give brief details of the assistance needed. Individuals who qualify for assistance are then matched with lawyers who have volunteered to provide legal assistance.
Disaster-related legal issues include landlord/tenant problems, insurance claims, FEMA claims and consumer issues such as contractor fraud.
Since September 2007, the ABA YLD has responded to more than 159 declared disasters in 43 states and two U.S. territories (including 18 so far this year).
ABA to host Homeland Security Law Institute, Sept. 25-27
High-profile homeland security experts will offer insights on the state of national security at the 12th Annual Homeland Security Law Institute, Sept. 25-27 in Washington, D.C. This conference examines the state of security from infrastructure to exports, immigration to chemical safety and the roles of the government agencies, law enforcement, the military and the legal profession charged with keeping the country secure.
Featured speakers include:
• Dana J. Boente - acting assistant attorney general for National Security Division, U.S. Department of Justice
• Bradley Booker, acting general counsel, Office of the Director of National Intelligence
• Thomas P. Bossert, assistant to the President for Homeland Security & Counterterrorism
• Michael Chertoff, former secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• Elaine Duke, acting secretary of Homeland Security
• Glenn S. Gerstell, general counsel, National Security Agency
• Sanchi Jayaram, chief, Foreign Investment and Corporate Engagement, National Security Division, U.S. Department of Justice
• Rob Joyce, special assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator
• Christopher Krebs, assistant secretary for Infrastructure Protection, National Protection and Programs Directorate, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• Joseph B. Maher, acting general counsel, principal deputy general counsel, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• Jeanette Manfra, acting deputy under secretary for Cybersecurity and Communication, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
The institute will feature a daily theme beginning with cybersecurity, followed the next day by the state of homeland security law and policy and closes with a focus on global partnerships.
Program highlights include:
• “Fundamentals of Incident Response” – The faster an organization either recognizes a cyber incident, prevents, defeats or minimizes an intrusion, the more likely the damages and costs of recovery are curtailed. Essential to the effectiveness of an organization’s incident response are the plans and processes put in place for conducting a cyber investigation once a breach occurs. This panel will explore how to evaluate a suspected breach, best practices for organizing and overseeing an investigation, and developing best practices for future breaches.
“FISA 702: A Discussion of the Legislative Landscape” – Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows for intelligence collection on foreign persons located outside of the United States, is set to expire on December 31. Congress must determine whether to reauthorize, revise it, or let it expire. Hear from government officials, legal and policy experts, and privacy advocates will discuss how the program is currently operating, and how best it can be used as a tool to protect against national security threats while at the same time ensuring that Americans’ civil liberties are protected.
“The Law and Policy of Securing the Border & The Immigration System” – Border security and immigration dominate headlines and lead the list of homeland security priorities. This panel will discuss policy initiatives and legal issues taken on by Congress, Homeland Security and the State Department. Panelists will share their insights on these efforts and how they impact the country, the department, and counterterrorism efforts.
“The Global Security Landscape - Partnerships & Priorities” – This panel will discuss and analyze the global security landscape. Veteran national security leaders and policymakers survey the range of national security threats and give us their views on the legal and policy responses, the state of our international partnerships, and what our priorities should be moving forward.
