Law for The Poor

1981]
Legal Services for Poor People
able, are the first as well as the last resort: they are the only avenue of
redress.
This line of analysis leads to giving priority to dispute avoidance and
dispute settlement by legal services programs. It also helps to underscore
that all segments of our society-not just poor people-have a vital stake
in those programs. One does not have to raise the specter of blood in the
streets to appreciate the importance to all of us that the legal system be
used as widely as possible when self-help is the only other option.
The point is emphasized by the reality in our society that many of the
traditional institutions for settling (or at least containing) disputes-family
and church being primary among them-are far less able to cope than in
earlier years. We can-and I do-bemoan the loss of strength in these
institutions, but the loss is no less real.
E. Legal Services Lawyers are Civil-Law Enforcement Agents
The next line of analysis is closely related to several of the preceding
approaches, but it offers, nonetheless, a distinct perspective. The job of
those in legal services programs around the country is to ensure that civil
laws-local, state, and federal-are enforced on behalf of poor people, just
as they are on behalf of those who are able to afford an attorney. The
point is fundamental, but often forgotten. It leads to giving priority to
those types of problems in which the legal rights of a poor person have
been violated by a public official or another private citizen.
This approach also highlights the disingenuousness of the Reagan administration's
suggestion that the states can, if they choose, pick up the
funding for legal services that would be eliminated by the federal government.
It is hardly surprising that some officials-whether state governors or
petty bureaucrats-prefer to act regarding poor people without exposing
themselves to potential legal action. Many landlords, retailers, and employers
feel the same way. They would prefer to deal with their tenants,
customers, and employees without regard to the civil laws in matters involving
poor people. When faced with reduced budgets and necessary
choice among programs, therefore, it is not hard to predict the fate of legal
services under the Reagan administration's proposal-particularly in those
states where legal services are most needed.
F Access to the Legal System is an Inherent Right of Citizenship
It is not by happenstance that "to establish justice" is the first purpose
expressed in the federal Constitution by the framers who sought "a more
perfect union." That aim is stated in the preamble before to "insure do-