Each day in our community, people are faced with the dilemma of daunting legal questions but limited financial resources, which may prohibit or deter them from seeking legal advice.
That is why The Jacksonville Bar Association, Jacksonville Area Legal Aid and Florida Coastal School of Law partnered to host an “Ask-A-Lawyer” event March 3.
Fifteen Fourth Circuit attorneys were at the Gateway Town Center from 9 a.m.-noon to field legal questions from members of the community.
Students assisted with the logistics and setup of the event. Many people from the community benefited from being able to speak to attorneys, free-of charge, for 10- to 15-minute individual consultations.
Ask-A-Lawyer attendees were asked to sign waivers verifying that they understood that the interviewing attorney was not opening a case on his or her behalf, but simply providing legal guidance and information on additional resources within the community.
Attorneys at the event came with expertise in a variety of areas of law and were able to provide guidance on a wide range of issues, including family law matters, employment, landlord/tenant, wills and estates, criminal law, bankruptcy and foreclosures.
Ask-A-Lawyer is an important event because it gives individuals the opportunity for one-on-one guidance from an attorney.
They can then determine whether they have a meritorious case, what their course of action may be and whether they may be able to resolve the issue without the need of an attorney.
While agencies like JALA and Three Rivers Legal Services serve low-income clients with civil legal services and the Office of Public Defender serves low-income individuals with criminal charges, the need for legal services in the community is far greater than these agencies can provide with staff resources.
This is why an event like Ask-A-Lawyer is so valuable as a means of community outreach. It helps to meet some of the community’s unmet needs.
A special “thank you” is extended to all the attorneys who participated: Victoria McNair, Jamie Ibrahim, William Blume, Alessandro Apolito, Tess Arington, Markus Sermons, Laura Gapske, Kevin Moore, Millie Kanyar, Rusty Mead, Caroline Kubovy, Kim Clayton, Melina Buncome, Reese Marshall and Paula Bartlett.
Also, thanks to the law students who volunteered their Saturday morning to assist with the event: Tracy Engle, Kristen Warren, Theresa Carli, Nick Porta, Jordan Marshall, Carlos Mora, Teri Mai, Jessica Avilan, Marr Graves, Shanae Harris, Catherine Case, Donna Dackow and Christina Brown.
The reward for participating attorneys was in the statements from participants.
Some of their comments were: “I’m so relieved. That’s just the information I needed.” “That attorney could not have been nicer or more helpful. Thank you for being here.”
If you would like to participate in Ask-A-Lawyer events, send an email to Kathy Para, JBA Pro Bono Committee Chair, at [email protected].