Petition asks Wisconsin court to expand lawyer appointments for poor

Source: Milwaukee Journal SentinelSept.自存倉 30--Much of Wisconsin's civil justice system is fundamentally unfair to poor people, and Wisconsin's Supreme Court should take the lead in changing that, according to a new petition filed Monday with the court.The petition, filed by Legal Action Wisconsin and 19 other lawyers, seeks a rule allowing a judge to appoint lawyers for indigent parties in certain kinds of civil actions when necessary to ensure fairness.It also asks the high court to finance a pilot project in Jefferson County, where two judges and the county have agreed to study the impact of giving lawyers to low-income litigants in evictions and foreclosures, termination of parental rights and loss of benefits such as food stamps.A similar petition two years ago drew unanimous philosophical support from the court, which nonetheless denied it as too expensive.Are proponents more confident this time?"The only thing I can say is, you only fail when you quit," Legal Action executive director John Ebbott said Monday from Madison, where he had filed the petition with the court."You can't just say, 'Oh well, there's systemwide fundamental unfairness in our trials. Too bad,'" Ebbott said. "This court has been very assertive in its independence to address such problems in past cases. It needs to lead again."Ebbott and other proponents seek a so-called Civil Gideon rule, referring to Gideon v. Wainwright, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that established that indigent criminal defendants are entitled to a lawyer at public expense.But thousands of poor people slog their way through various civil court proceedings without the benefit of a lawyer. Critics say that leads to expensive, unfair results and bogs down the courts as officials try to deal with parties unfamiliar with the law.Volunteer lawyer programs and legal aid programs with patchwork funding can't meet a significant portion of the need, advocates for the poor say.Many in the legal system believe poor people who find themselves in some kinds of civil court proceedings -- where basic needs like sustenance, shelter, cmini storageothing, heat, medical care, safety, and child custody and placement are stake -- should also have lawyers appointed. Courts could not appoint attorneys for people bringing personal injury or other non-essential claims.The proposed rule would not require appointed lawyers in every such case. Judges would consider the skills of each party, the complexity of the case and whether the opposing party has a lawyer.Two years ago, more than 1,300 people signed a petition asking the court to adopt a rule to provide appointments in such situations. The court held a public hearing and in January 2012 turned it down.Though the court supported the concept, it said mandating a lawyer for everyone who needs one would be too costly -- an estimated $50 million a year. Proponents say it would save that much in social service costs incurred as a result of so many unrepresented people getting knocked around the legal system with bad outcomes.But given fiscal reality, the new petition reminds the court of the testimony it heard the last time, the extensive research and planning done by the Access to Justice Commission and how the Jefferson County trial project could get rolling with just $100,000.The petitioners say a pilot project would collect information on the kinds and number of cases for which judges decide to appoint a lawyer, the judge's rationale for appoint in each case, the cost of the lawyer, and some efforts to measure the outcome in both appointment and non-appointment cases.The latest petition notes that several other less-expensive alternatives to paying appointed lawyers in civil actions that were discussed favorably in 2011 never came to pass. They included clearer direction to circuit judges that they have authority to make such appointments, offering Continuing Legal Education credits to lawyers for pro bono work if appointed, paying for other pilots and tracking where, when and how the limited appointments are made.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Visit the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel at .jsonline.com Distributed by MCT Information Services儲存