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Self-help law program starting |
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Wednesday, 02 April 2008 |
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Page 1 of 2 By Melody Martinsen, Editor Choteau Acantha
For many people trying to resolve a legal issue in court - a name change, a landlord-tenant conflict, a divorce - can be a bewildering, expensive experience.
Because of the costs involved, some Montanans try to navigate the justice and district court systems without an attorney - representing himself or herself or proceeding “pro se” to use the Latin court term. These pro se litigants often go to their local Clerk of Court’s or judge’s office, seeking help to find the right forms and procedure to follow to rectify their legal problems.
Now the 9th Judicial District Court in Teton, Pondera, Glacier and Toole counties has received a $14,700 grant from the Montana Supreme Court to set up a “self-help law program” make it easier for these litigants to resolve their issues.
In January 2007, Montana joined a burgeoning number of states setting up programs to improve access to the judicial system for “self-represented” litigants. The 2007 Legislature approved $505,000 in start-up funding for the Montana Supreme Court to create the state’s “Self-Help Law Program.”
The Supreme Court then began making grants to district and justice courts and clerks of district court to set up programs in which a facilitator is hired to help self-represented litigants find the right forms and use the correct process to handle their needs. The grants can be used to buy computer and printer equipment for a self-help work station, to coordinate volunteers to work with litigants or even to put on self-help law clinics.
In the sprawling 9th Judicial District, Judge Laurie McKinnon sees the need to help pro se litigants all the time. “On a daily basis, the Clerk of Court offices and my office receive calls from residents who are not represented and need to have a matter addressed by the court,” she wrote in an application for a $14,700 self-help program grant. “In most instances, they cannot afford to retain an attorney to represent them in a civil matter they wish to pursue. Further, in many of these instances, proceeding in court is the only means they have of resolving the matter.”
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