Nearly 200 prominent general counsel from around the country sent a letter to all members of Congress on March 28, urging them to ignore the Trump administration’s recommended defunding of the Legal Services Corporation.
“As the cornerstone of equal justice in America,” they wrote, “LSC creates a level playing field for the many lower and moderate-income families who cannot afford a lawyer.”
The letter continued: “While we understand that within this fiscal environment difficult decisions about spending must be made, we believe that access to justice is not an expendable luxury but an indispensable manifestation of our country’s most fundamental values.”
The 185 lawyers who signed the letter supported a $450 million appropriation for the coming fiscal year, “consistent with the appropriation received in FY2010, adjusted for inflation.”
The first signer was John Schultz, general counsel of Hewlett Packard Enterprise and chair of the National Legal Aid & Defender Association Corporate Advisory Committee. He was quoted in an article in The National Law Journal:
“LSC programs provide support to working families, allowing them to create significant positive impacts on our businesses and communities,” Schultz said. "LSC also provides the structure for corporations and in-house legal departments, like ours here at HPE, to provide pro bono legal services and make a real difference in the lives of people around us.”
Published March 29, 2017.