Upsolve Wins the Right to Give Basic Legal Advice

Thomas A. BerryTwo months ago, I wrote about a pathbreaking legal challenge aimed at expanding access to justice. The case was brought byUpsolve, a financial ‐​education and civil rights nonprofit. Upsolve currently helps low‐​income families file for bankruptcy for free, but it wants to do more. Upsolve wants to aid low‐​income individuals by helping them respond when they are sued for allegedly unpaid debts. To this end, Upsolve has (in its own words) trained “professionals who are not lawyers to provide free legal advice on whether and how to respond to a debt collection lawsuit. ” This free legal advice would be aimed at “increasing access to the courts and thereby protecting the property and liberty of low‐​income New Yorkers who are currently unable to understand or access their legal rights when faced with a debt collection action. ”But before Upsolve could put this plan into action, a legal impediment stood in its way: New York ’s law against the unauthorized practice of law (UPL). New York forbids anyone who is not a licensed lawyer from providing legal advice, no matter how straightforward and simple. That the advice iscorrect and desperately needed is not a defense under the law. Even if Upsolve ’s volunteers gave flawless, free, and greatly appreciated assistance, they could have risked criminal prosecution for their efforts.That ’s where Upsolve’s lawsuit came in. Upsolve narrowly challenged ...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs