Without judicial access, justice is denied

Jeanne Windham

House District 12

A dad and mom, whose daughter is on meth, want and need guardianship of their granddaughter in order to keep her in high school. An elderly couple is having difficulty getting the social security benefits to which they are entitled. A domestic violence victim is faced with the added trauma of the abuser threatening to get legal custody of the children and refusing to pay the needed child support. A couple who asked their landlord to fix the broken water heater, instead received an eviction notice.

Although each of these legal challenges is unique, what they have in common are low-income Montanans who cannot afford the necessary legal services that will help them. Over 187,000 Montanans, 22 percent of our population, qualify as low income under federal poverty guidelines; and Montana Legal Services, the publicly funded provider of civil legal services to the poor, has lost nearly one-half of its attorney services.

Now, there is only one Legal Services attorney for every 12,000 low-income Montanans. Behind these facts and figures are real people with real problems with no hope of access to justice.

Last week, the Law and Justice Interim Committee met in Helena; one of its assignments is to study access by low-income Montanans to the Montana civil legal system and to determine whether any changes are appropriate. In his book, "Justice And The Poor," Reginald Heber Smith wrote, "Differences in the ability of classes to use the machinery of the law, if permitted to remain, lead inevitably to disparity between the rights of classes … And when the law recognizes and enforces a distinction between classes, revolution ensues or democracy is at an end."

As a member of this committee, it is important to me that we keep in mind that all Montanans have a constitutional guaranty to equal protection of the laws. That includes no and low-income Montanans.

And without access to justice is justice denied.

The process has just begun; and it is no small task to find solutions to long unanswered questions. The State Bar of Montana has just completed the "Montana Legal Needs Study."

The 50-page report concluded that there is a huge unmet need for civil legal services among low income families, who view their legal problems as highly important. Unfortunately, the widespread inability to obtain legal services is creating serious negative attitudes about our legal system.

Part of the challenge facing the committee is to determine what role the state should play in facilitating and funding civil legal services to low-income Montanans. In addi tion, the Law and Justice Interim Committee will conduct two studies: The delivery of county attorney services (SJR 40) and sentencing equity (HJR 15). We are further charged with oversight of the Department of Justice, Department of Corrections and Judicial Branch.

Although the tasks ahead will be challenging, the bi-partisan committee, 12 members from the Senate and the House, is committed to working together to find solutions for the real problems facing Montanans. Part of the process is the important component of public participation. Each meeting includes time for public comment, and I urge you to either attend one of the meetings or write or email the committee your thoughts, experiences, comments and concerns regarding these studies as well as any agencies of which the committee has oversight. Our next meeting is Nov. 17 in Helena.

Next week: SJR 40, is it time for a change in the county attorney system?

As always, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, or just need assistance, please give me a call.

Rep. Jeanne Windham - HD 12

894 Finley Point Rd.

Polson, MT 59860