PSJD Public Interest News Digest – September 20, 2019
Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives
Hello there, interested public! Here at NALP, I’m still focused on overhauling the technology that powers PSJD.org. Out in the world, there’s a variety of legal technology news as well, with Ohio rolling out a new statewide legal information portal and several commentators talking about the importance of data analytics to legal services organizations and non-profits.
In other news, commentators are examining a report out of Utah, where a work group on regulatory reform proposed new rules that would allow nonlawyers to own and invest in law firms as part of an effort to narrow the access-to-justice gap (published while we were on hiatus, in August). Student loans continue to make headlines, with consumer advocates accusing the U.S. Department of Education of shielding student loan services from investigations into illegal activities and a new poll indicating that a majority of voters support student debt cancellation. Immigration law at the southern border also continues to evolve, with legal volunteers heading into Mexico and Border Patrol agents taking over duties from asylum officers.
One more thing: PSJD subscriber schools have until Friday, September 27th to nominate students for the 2019-2020 PSJD Pro Bono Publico Award. The award goes to a law student who has made significant contributions to pro bono work at their institution and in their community, and it comes with a commemorative plaque and a check. So if you have anyone on your campus you think I should know about, please consider nominating them.
See you around,
Sam
Immigration, Refugee & Citizenship Issues
- In Dilley TX, “Border Patrol agents, rather than highly trained asylum officers, are beginning to screen migrant families for ‘credible fear’ to determine whether applicants qualify for U.S. protection[; t]he first Border Patrol agents arrived last week[.]”
- In San Diego CA, “[t]he National Immigration Justice Center (NIJC) announced [] it would be collaborating with the Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., in hopes of providing legal counsel to asylum seekers and other migrants.”
- In Atlanta GA, Georgia State announced “the first law clinic at any university in Georgia specifically dedicated to immigration law will open [in January 2020].”
- In New York NY, “[c]ity officials and advocates are reaching out to immigrant communities to provide information about the Trump Administration’s pending ‘public charge’ rule. The policy, which could potentially take effect Oct. 15, seeks to make it harder for some immigrants to get their residency permit or a visa if they receive social benefits or are likely to do so in the future.”
- In Mexico, lawyers are arriving from around the United States to counsel asylum-seekers “being released by U.S. federal agents to the streets of Matamoros, Mexico, prior to their hearing dates” under a new Administration policy. “Previously, asylum-seekers either were held in U.S. detention facilities until their federal immigration court dates, or they were released with a Notice to Appear in court on their own.”
Disaster Legal Aid
Student Loans & Student Debt
- In a Hill-HarrisX poll, “[a] majority of voters said they support the idea of free state college and canceling student debt.”
- In Washington DC, “[t]he Education Department is intervening on behalf of student loan servicers, some accused of illegally exploiting borrowers, by declining to turn over information to law enforcement agencies in multiple states investigating the businesses, some consumer advocates say.”
- Also in Washington DC, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment held a hearing on “Broken Promises: Examining the Failed Implementation of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.”
- Also also in Washington DC, the Federal News Network published a podcast arguing that the “[f]ederal loan forgiveness program [is] too complicated for intended users.”
- Again also in Washington DC, “[t]he U.S. Army has already achieved its recruiting goal this year, after falling short about 6,500 recruits in 2018. At the Pentagon this week, the head of Army Recruiting Command Maj. Gen. Frank Muth attributed the success to America’s crippling student debt crisis.”
- In Pennsylvania, “[a] bill…that would offer student loan forgiveness to volunteer first responders has passed a House committee and could get a floor vote next month.”
- In Washington State, the “State Department of Financial Institution (DFI) has published proposed revisions to its student loan servicer regulations.”
- In Minnesota, “[t]he first set of labor contracts negotiated by Gov. Tim Walz’s administration provide for worker raises, slightly increase employee health costs, expand student loan repayment offerings and set a $15 per hour minimum wage for members of the largest union.”
Legal Technology
- In San Francisco CA, “Microsoft Corp. President and Chief Legal Office Brad Smith said…that U.S. tech companies will change how they moderate online platforms in response to new laws from foreign governments, regardless of whether U.S. lawmakers take action.”
- Meanwhile, “Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., a long-time advocate for stronger data privacy rules and current sponsor of the Information Transparency and Personal Data Control Act, said today it’s unlikely that Congress will take action on this issue this year.”
- Meanwhile, “[a] landmark California law that will alter the way internet giants like Google and Facebook collect and deploy user data has survived heavy lobbying from industry groups and is set to take effect in January with most of its major consumer privacy protections intact.”
- In Ohio, Ohio Legal Help, “a website created to help all Ohioans access the civil justice system by providing free information on common legal issues, details about court and other legal forms and referrals to legal aid and bar association referral programs, formally launched[.]”
Non-Profit & Government Management & Hiring
- Findlaw.com examined a trend in which, “[i]n recent years, local governments and public offices have begun turning to crowdfunding to finance projects and needs.”
- In San Diego Magazine, spoke with Josh Shapiro of UC San Diego’s Center for Research on the Regional Economy about how “in an increasingly data-driven world, nonprofits need numbers to prove that their good intentions are actually having an impact.”
- Relatedly, Law.com held a webinar on how “there is still a disconnect between what [legal services] clients [are] hoping to see from [law departments’] data and what they are currently getting out of it.”
- In California, “[t]he U.S. Department of Justice is backing a lawsuit that seeks to invalidate a new California state retirement plan, taking aim at the growing number of states sponsoring retirement savings plans for people who lack access to one at work.”
- In San Bernardino CA, “San Bernardino plans to appeal a judge’s ruling that city leaders have no authority to reduce the total compensation of two elected officials [the City Clerk and City Attorney] ahead of the expiration of their terms early next year.”
- In Washington DC, “House Republicans and Democrats agreed during a tax panel hearing [] to examine how they could strengthen laws and regulations to either deny or revoke the tax-exempt status for organizations that promulgate hate.”
Electoral Access
- In Washington DC, “the House Judiciary’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties…focused the nation’s attention on the VRA with a hearing titled ‘Evidence of Current and Ongoing Voting Discrimination.’”
- In Nashville TN, “Judge Aleta A. Trauger issued an opinion granting a preliminary injunction in Tennessee N.A.A.C.P. v. Hargett, enjoining a new Tennessee law that threatens criminal and civil penalties on civic engagement organizations that conduct voter registration drives[.]”
Access to Justice – Civil
- In Denver CO, “the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System [announced it] is partnering with Netherlands-based The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law (HiiL) to assess the justice needs of people and businesses in the UNited States [in a] two-year US Justice Needs study.”
- In Utah, Findlaw.com reported on the Utah Work Group on Regulatory Reform’s Report on ‘Narrowing the Access-to-Justice Gap by Reimagining Regulation’ [Ed. Note: released in August 2019, when the digest was on hiatus]. According to FindLaw, “[the] report outlines an overhaul of the state’s regulatory structure for law practices, including new rules that would allow nonlawyers to own and invest in law firms.”
- In New York NY, “[i]n a bid to root out so-called tenant blacklisting, the city may expand its list of protected classes to include people who have been involved in housing court cases.”
Access to Justice – Criminal
- In Wisconsin, the Western District of Wisconsin ruled that “Wisconsin indigent criminal defendants’ constitutional claim for timely appointment of counsel can’t proceed in federal court even though the state’s public defender system needs ‘urgent repair.’”
- In Milwaukee WI, local news reported that “[b]ody cam video…valuable as it is, [] can also be a time-consuming burden to lawyers[. S]omeone has to watch all the footage. It can be difficult for defense attorneys, who are already stretched thin.”
- In Tompkins County NY, “[the county] Legislature has approved unanimously a five-year performance-based contract to support the Assigned Counsel Department[, providing] more than $2.5 million through the New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services[.]”
- In Ionia County MI, the county “Board of Commissioners are considering partnering with other counties for indigent defense services.”
Criminal Justice Reform
- In St. Paul MN, “[t]he…City Attorney’s Office [launched] a pilot program…this month giv[ing] some offenders a second chance if they agree to work with their community.”
- In Florence SC, “the South Carolina Supreme Court ordered the creation of [a ‘homeless court’] in the city’s municipal court system.”