Pro Bono Legal Services

A columnist in the Northwest Herald wrote yesterday about the importance of defending yourself against a debt judgment. He was writing about the legal action in court when a creditor hauls a past-due debt before the judge and asks for collection help.

Do not ignore such "greetings" from the court to show up. Even if you feel your case is hopeless, go to court. When you don't show up, the court is quite likely to grant the creditor's request, regardless of its worthiness.

In the article also was mention of pro bono services - those services to a legal client without charge. Why would a lawyer provide his services without charge to a client? Or will he do so?

Recent cases in Island Lake and Carpentersville were resolved in favor of the defendants through pro bono services. In each case "big" law firms represented the "little guy."

Columnist Steve Bucci wrote, "If you cannot afford an attorney, try a legal aid organization or ask your local bar association to recommend a pro-bono lawyer."

I have a friend who has serious legal problems of numerous types: financial, employment, driving privileges, tickets, child support, custody - to name a few.

This person's opinion of the legal counsel she has received is that billings are prompt, large and vague, and legal representation has been weak. All her available money, including credit, has gone to that lawyer.

Prairie States Legal Services will not talk to her because she has an attorney. I suggested that she confer with a different lawyer about formally disengaging her attorney, in order to stop billings.

When I called the McHenry County Bar Association, I learned yesterday morning that it does not help anyone obtain pro bono services. What it does is "support" Prairie States Legal Services.

This, in my opinion, is a cop-out by McHenry County lawyers. By kicking in a few dollars of their Bar Association dues, they can "feel good" about doing their part. And they can avoid the very real need that a certain few people might have for pro bono services.

Are local law firms large enough to provide occasional pro bono services, when a deserving case comes along? Some of them are, based on billings. But it might cost them $50,-100,000, and that will come right out of partners' bonuses. Ouch!

How much easier it is to let some little fish go right down the drain.

Ever try to deal with Prairie States Legal Services? Can the poor or uneducated person really stand up and get into their system and get the help they need? First you have to slug through their intake procedure. They have walk-in hours on Tuesdays (only). And only in the morning.

If you have a job, even a minimum-wage job, then you are probably working on Tuesday morning. Can you afford to take the whole day off (and lose the 8 x $7.75/hour - $62.00 for an entire day's work?) to try to get services at Prairie States?

Or you can call their phone number. When you call the local number, you'll be given a toll-free number to call. When you call that number, expect a long time on-hold. If you are calling from work, is your boss going to wait patiently while you sit and hold the phone for 30-60 minutes? Not likely. Then the next stop will be the Unemployment Office.

We could do better here in McHenry County. Maybe the lawyers should kick in more money for Prairie States so they could hire more paralegals and shorten the telephone wait-time. And to hire another attorney or two to actually do the work.