Archive for June, 2019

PSJD Public Interest News Digest – June 28, 2019

Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

Photo: Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress

Hello there, interested public! Immigration issues dominated the news this week, with disturbing revelations from immigration attorneys about the conditions under which asylum seekers, including children, are being detained, an announcement from the administration about upcoming raids, and local government responses to that announcement. Ontario has a new Attorney General, and the Editorial Board of the Toronto Star wants him to revisit recent cuts to Legal Aid. More things happened too, with links below.

It’s a very busy summer, and I’ve been grateful this week for the assistance of Annie Dou and Quinn Casey, two of PSJD’s Summer Project Assistants. Annie and Quinn helped me winnow the many, many stories I collect each week to the most relevant ones; thanks!

See you around,

Sam

Immigration, Refugee & Citizenship Issues

  • In Washington DC, “Congress sent President Trump a $4.6 billion humanitarian aid package on Thursday after Speaker Nancy Pelosi capitulated to Republicans and Democratic moderates and dropped her insistence on stronger protections for migrant children in overcrowded border shelters.
  • In Washington DC, “ICE Acting Director Mark Morgan, who was chosen Tuesday to lead U.S. Customs and Border Protection…said [the upcoming operation] will be focused on those who have had their due process, given an order a romal from a judge and notified by mail earlier this year.
  • Meanwhile, CNN catalogued responses to the planned upcoming raids from Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco.
  • In Arlington VA, “[t]wo Virginia organizations are looking to help as Arlington braces for immigration raids in the wake of President Trump’s deportation threats.
  • In Chicago IL, “Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) said she would take “concrete steps” to support immigrant communities after reports emerged that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would begin raids this weekend to round up families who have received deportation orders.
  • In Dallas TX, “[the] City Council has approved $100,000 in funds for the city’s Civil Legal Immigration Services initiative to distribute to non-profit organizations for legal services for undocumented residents facing immigration court proceedings.
  • In New York, “Gov. Andrew Cuomo has joined with a growing number of elected officials across the country in opposing the Trump administration’s reported plan to begin ICE raids early Sunday targeting illegal alien families.
  • Student Loans & Student Debt

  • Also in Washington DC, “[m]ore than 150,000 former students of for-profit colleges filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education…claiming the agency is depriving them of the student debt relief to which they’re legally entitled.
  • Also also in Washington DC, “Sens. Elizabeth Warren [] and Cory Booker [] sent letters to the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission…requesting the agencies reconsider a 2018 decision to allow two of the biggest student loan servicers merge [sic].
  • Financial Advisor reported that “Employer Student Loan Benefit Programs [are] a Growing Trend,” according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute.
  • Non-Profit & Government Management & Hiring

  • In New York NY, “Mayor Bill de Blasio[‘s announcement] earlier this month that public defenders will have their pay raised to match the salaries of attorneys on the city payroll within the next four years…brought ‘a feeling of relief’ [but] also has some concerned about the details.
  • Legal Technology

  • In Washington DC, “legislation [was] floated by Senators Mark Warner and Josh Hawley [that] would require commercial services with more than 100 million active monthly users to disclose to their customers and financial regulators the types of data they collect. They would also have to provide their users with an assessment at frequent intervals of the data’s value to them.
  • Inside Philanthropy discussed Consumer Reports’ new “Digital Lab, focusing on the data privacy and security issues that consumers face in today’s digital era.
  • Access to Justice – Civil

  • Also in Washington DC, “U.S. Senators Kamala D. Harris [] and Dan Sullivan [] introduced…legislation to ensure that all survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault have access to a lawyer if they need it.
  • In New Mexico, the New Mexico Commission on Access to Justice “launched [a] ‘THIS ABOUT THIS’…campaign ask[ing] people to ‘think about’ the serious consequences of the lack of legal representation or resources.
  • In Ontario, “[t]he Chinese & Southeast Asian Legal Clinic…has announced that it will be appealing a decision by Legal Aid Ontario to reduce its budget.
  • Also in Ontario, The Toronto Star’s Editorial Board argued that “before he starts on any new projects, [attorney general] Downey should revisit a decision made in April by his predecessor, Caroline Mulroney, to slash the province’s legal aid budget by 30 per cent.
  • In Alberta, the senior advisory counsel for adult criminal law at Legal Aid Alberta announced that his agency “is working on an overall Indigenous action plan…which is in its final draft stages.
  • Legal Evolution’s editor argued that “I am [] hopeful about our ability to substantially solve access to justice. But it’s likely going to involve a massive redesign of how many types of disputes get resolved, including the possibility of lawyers and courtrooms being engineered out the process.” His comments came in response to “the Civil Resolution Tribunal (CRT), Canada’s first online dispute resolution (ODR) system.
  • Access to Justice – Criminal

  • In Massachusetts, after “a Springfield judge ordered two defendants released from jail because they had not been provided a lawyer [and] also ordered the state’s public defender’s office to provide attorneys in court every day [] the Committee for Public Counsel Services[] is appealing the decision to the Massachusetts Supreme Court, saying its attorneys are already overburdened.
  • Criminal Justice Reform

  • In Philadelphia PA, The Phildelphia Inquirer reported that “statistics obtained from the DA’s Office show that in 2018, Krasner’s first year in office, 78 gun-possession cases were placed in the [Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition] program–compared with just 12 such diversions in gun-possession cases the previous year[.]
  • Essence noted that “[a] record number of women of color have been elected to District Attorneys positions in the past four years,” and asked “do African-American female top prosecutors have th[e] same level of freedom [to exercise their discretion as their white male counterparts]?
  • In Ventura County CA, “[b]ucking prior decisions across the state…[that] have found [Senate Bill 1421] requires the release of internal documents about police use of force, dishonesty, and sexual assault cases regardless of when the incidenct occurred”, “a Ventura County Superior Court judge ruled…that Senate Bill 1421 cannot be applied ‘retroactively.’
  • Comments off

    PSJD Public Interest News Digest – June 21, 2019

    Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

    Photo: Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress

    Hello there, interested public! Lots of news this week. My “Editor’s Choice” feature returns to highlight a forthcoming article in which a professor suggests that the number of student borrowers eligible for public service loan forgiveness may be significantly higher than current DoE practice suggests. Also, NELP released a new report accusing the federal government of outsourcing its duties to for-profit contractors. Legal Aid organizations in Ohio commisioned an independent study demonstrating the long-term impact of their legal services, and the Chief Justice of Canada made comments related to (but not directly about) recent cuts to civil legal aid in Ontario. All this and more, in the links below.

    See you around,

    Sam

    Editor’s Choice

    Professor Gregory S. Crespi of SMU Dedman School of Law released “Why Are 99% of the Applications for Debt Discharge under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program Being Denied, and Will This Change?” on SSRN.

    Immigration, Refugee & Citizenship Issues

    Student Loans & Student Debt

    Non-Profit & Government Management & Hiring

    Legal Technology

    Access to Justice – Civil

    Access to Justice – Criminal

    Criminal Justice Reform

    Comments off

    PSJD Public Interest News Digest – June 14, 2019

    Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

    Photo: Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress

    Hello there, interested public! Lots of news this week. In New York City, legal aid attorneys are unionizing, while in Saskatchewan, contract talks between Legal Aid Saskatchewan and its employees’ union have broken down. In Portland Oregon, public defenders staged a walkout to insist on staffing and pay reforms while in Detroit, Michigan is setting up an entirely new public defender’s office (and hiring!). Legal Aid Ontario provided more information about how recent budget cuts will affect its operations, while legal aid providers in the province pushed back against the government decision. And student loan debt oversight in the United States continues to be controversial. That’s all for now; back to a busy summer.

    See you around,

    Sam

    Editor’s Choice

    I mention this piece without commenting on its substance, but because I suspect that with US News’ profile many prospective students will read it: US News and World Report published “How to Find a Strong Human Rights Law Program.”

    Immigration, Refugee & Citizenship Issues

    Student Loans & Student Debt

    Legal Technology

    War Crimes

    Access to Justice – Civil

    Access to Justice – Criminal

    Criminal Justice Reform

    Comments off

    PSJD Public Interest News Digest – June 7, 2019

    Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

    Photo: Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress

    Hello there, interested public! The digest is squeaking out this afternoon, as the Public Service Initiatives desk is somewhat short-staffed this week. Our 2018-2019 PSJD Fellow, Awa Sowe, has left us for her next job, as a Staff Attorney with the National Veterans Legal Services Program. (Congratulations Awa!!!) I hope you’ll forgive me if, beyond noting that the Trump administration announced it is cancelling legal services for unaccompanied minors, I leave the news to speak for itself this week.

    See you around,
    Sam

    Scholarships & Funding

    Immigration, Refugee, & Citizenship Issues

    Student Loans & Student Debt

    Nonprofit Management & Hiring

    Reproductive Rights

    Disaster Legal Aid

    Environmental Law

    Legal Technology

    Access to Justice – Civil

    Access to Justice – Criminal

    Criminal Justice Reform

    Comments off