Louisville Bar Foundation

Catholic Charities Immigration Legal Services helps low-income refugees and immigrants living in Kentucky obtain legal assistance. The LBF grant will allow refugees and immigrants solve immigration and/or employment status issues so to achieve or maintain financial stability and economic independence.

Legal Aid Society - Doctors & Lawyers for Kids: Doctors & Layers for Kids is a collaborative effort of the Legal Aid Society, LBA, U of L Pediatrics, and the Family Health Centers that assists children from low-income families by training healthcare providers to recognize unmet legal needs that affect patient health and by having free legal services available to families in need. LBF funds will be used to support services to the Smoketown Family Wellness Center and other pediatric settings.

La Casita Center - Legal Outreach and Clinic Services: In addition to the numerous social, nutritional, and cultural programs La Casita Center provides in the Latino immigrant community, it specifically conducts outreach to Latina women and families in need of legal services. Through its targeted outreach and legal clinics, participants receive help on understanding the legal system, immigration issues, family law matters and other legal problems. LBF funds will support the Center's targeted outreach to the Latino community and the development of a pro bono attorney panel to assist program participants in understanding legal problems and how to resolve them.

CASA provides advocacy services to children with active cases in Family Court. To increase the number of volunteer advocates, CASA must continually train and provide education. The LBF grant will support CASA's "Advocacy Academy" program and increase its number of trainings to boost volunteer's advocacy skillset and the understanding of interrelated child welfare, justice and medical systems.

Legal Clinics for Tenant's Rights: As a poverty law research and advocacy center, Kentucky Equal Justice Center (KEJC) works with the regional legal aid programs and community partners to promote equal access to justice for all Kentuckians. Low-income residents often face housing instability because they lack information on legal protections and how to access legal services. KEJC will collaborate with Louisville community partners in offering monthly clinics education tenants on issues related to maintenance of rental premises, illegal fees, unlawful rent increases, retaliation and other issues threatening tenants' housing stability. The LBF grant will support monthly clinics and related outreach materials.

The Ackerson Law Clinic at the University of Louisville's Brandeis School of Law offers students who have completed initial course requirements the opportunity for practical experience by representing clients under the supervision of clinical instructors. The Mediation Program allows students to apply their mediation skills to assist low-income clients on issues which traditionally complicate and delay judicial resolution of Family Court disputes - custody, visitation, child support. LBF funds support this program designed to help the underserved population to improve the efficiency of Family Courts, and to enhance the practical skills of law students.

The Louisville Bar Association's New Lawyer Academy is a comprehensive six-month program designed for attorneys with up to three years of experience. This inaugural academy aims to equip new lawyers with the skills and knowledge necessary for a successful legal career. The curriculum covers a wide range of topics, addressing both professional and personal development needs. Career development is key component, covering personal branding, mentoring, and partnership tracks. Ethical considerations, including confidentiality and pro bono work, are integrated into the curriculum. The New Lawyer Academy seeks to bridge the gap between law school education and the realities of legal practice, setting new attorneys on a path to long-term career success. The grant for the LBF will fund scholarships for solo or small firm practitioners or other s who other wise cannot afford the full tuition.

The International Rescue Committee provides opportunities for refugees, asylees, victims of human trafficking, survivors of torture, and other immigrants to thrive in America. Refugees are required by law to apply for adjustment of status ("green card") after being present in the U.S. for one year. The paperwork is often complicated, and the refugees frequently require legal assistance. LBF funds will support regular workshops where pro bono attorneys will assist refugees in preparing the necessary paperwork to comply with the filing requirements.

Immigration Legal Services - Kentucky Refugee Ministries provides legal services to immigrants who have resettled in the Louisville area. Many of these immigrants need to file applications with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for permanent residence status or to petition for asylum. In recent years, the number of requests for legal assistance far exceeded staff capacity, creating backlogs and waiting lists. The LBF grant will provide funds for KRM to strategically build staff capacity to meet this increased need and reduce the backlog and wait time. The grant also provides partial fee subsidies for immigrants who cannot afford to pay the entire costs of preparing and filing these documents.

Violence Intervention and Prevention Project - Legal Aid Society has a long tradition of serving the civil legal needs of low-income individuals and families in Metro Louisville. Its Violence Intervention and Prevention is a new program to provide legal information and representation to interrupt and redress violent crime in Metro Louisville. It will offer direct civil legal services to low-income survivors of violent injury and work to eliminate barriers these survivors face when seeking legal assistance and victim's rights enforcement. LBF funds will serve as a "match" to leverage other funds for staffing this new program.

Doctors & Lawyers for Kids - Doctors & Lawyers for Kids is a collaborative effort of the Legal Aid Society, LBA, U of L Pediatrics, and Family Health Centers that assists children from low-income families by training healthcare providers to recognize unmet legal needs that affect patient health and by having free legal services available to families in need. LBF funds will be used to support services to the Smoketown Family Wellness Center and other pediatric settings.

Fee Waiver Program - Catholic Charities Immigration Legal Services helps low-income refugees and immigrants living in Kentucky obtain legal assistance. The LBF grant will allow refugees and immigrants solve immigration and/or employment status issues so to achieve or maintain financial stability and economic independence.

Legal Outreach and Clinic Services - In addition to the numerous social, nutritional, and cultural programs La Casita Center provides in the Latino immigrant community, it specifically conducts outreach to Latina women and families in need of legal services. Through its targeted outreach and legal clinics, participants receive help on understanding the legal system, immigration issues, family law matters and other legal problems. LBF funds will support the Center's targeted outreach to the Latino community and the development of a pro bono attorney panel to assist program participants in understanding legal problems and how to solve them.

Film Documentary on Central High School's Street Law Program - The Central High School Law and Government Program has been a model "Street Law" program and has successfully educated hundreds of students about the role of law and inspired many to pursue legal careers. A grant from the LBF, along with charitable contributions from lawyers and law firms in Kentucky, will help fund a film documentary that celebrates the success of this program and shows why such programs are valuable in creating diversity in the legal profession. Kentucky to the World, a non-profit organization focused on elevating the success stores of people and programs in the Commonwealth, serves as the fiscal agent for this film production.

Expungement Clinics - Since 2014, Access Justice has provided free legal services through weekly or monthly clinics to low-income individuals and families throughout metro Louisville. With a network of over forty volunteer attorneys and with an office in the Portland neighborhood. Access Justice's legal clinics educate participants on how to resolve a broad range of legal problems. LBF's grant will provide funds to allow Access Justice to reach and serve individuals in need of expungements.

Ackerson Law Clinic Mediation Program - The Ackerson Law Clinic at the University of Louisville's Brandeis School of Law offers students who have completed initial course requirements the opportunity for practical experience by representing clients under the supervision of clinical instructors. The Mediation Program allows students to apply their mediation skills to assist low-income clients on issues which traditionally complicate and delay judicial resolution of Family Court disputes - custody, visitation, child support. LBF funds support and will help expand this program designed to help the underserved population, to improve the efficiency of Family Courts, and to enhance the practical skills of law students.

Teaching Children about Legal Jobs - Mothers Esquire is a local non-profit with a national network of over 7,500 members advocating for policies that promote gender equity in the legal profession and practices that encourage retention of attorney talent during caregiving years. LBF funds will support the development and implementation of a school curriculum that teaches about the diverse roles and responsibilities of lawyers in society, using the popular children's book, "My Mom, the Layer, " as the basis of lesson plans. The curriculum will be accessible online via the Mothers Esquire website and will be include age-appropriate content for preschoolers, kindergarteners, and students in grades 1-5.

Advocacy Academy - CASA provides advocacy services to children with active cases in Family Court. To increase the number of volunteer advocates, CASA must continually train and provide education. The LBF grant will support CASA's "Advocacy Academy" program and increase it's number of trainings to boost volunteers' advocacy skillset and the understanding of interrelated child welfare, justice and medical systems.

Veterans Legal Assistance Program: Legal Aid Society has a long tradition of serving the civil needs of low-income individuals and families in Metro Louisville. It has targeted its services in recent years to assist veterans with civil legal needs relating to their service or impacting their ability to lead healthy and stable civilian lives. LBF funds will support a medical-legal partnership (MLP) with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Robley Rex VA Medical Center (Louisville VAMC), and the University of Louisville, Louis D. Brandeis School of Law (Brandeis School of Law). This strategic partnership brings attorneys and law students together with Louisville VAMC medical professionals, integrating legal assistance into healthcare services to address socio-economic determinants that are negatively impacting the health and wellbeing of low-income veterans

Expungement Clinics: Since 2014, Access Justice has provided free legal services through weekly or monthly clinics to low-income individuals and families throughout metro Louisville. With a network of over forty volunteer attorneys and with an office in the Portland neighborhood. Access Justice's legal clinics educate participants on how to resolve a broad range of legal problems . LBF's grant will provide funds to allow Access Justice to reach and serve individuals in need of expungements.

Fee Waiver Program: Catholic Charities Immigration Legal Services helps low-income refugees and immigrants living in Kentucky obtain legal assistance. The LBF grant will allow refugees and immigrants solve immigration and/or employment status issues so to achieve or maintain financial stability and economic independence.

Technology for West Louisville Office: In 2022, Legal Aid Society will expand its presence and services in West Louisville by establishing a neighborhood office at the Goodwill Opportunity Campus. The neighborhood office will bring poverty-law expertise and community-development together by providing individual legal representation to West Louisville residents and connecting with grassroots, aspiring nonprofit organizations who are working in the area to assist these organizations in community development and identify the legal avenues and solutions available to them to promote long-term change. The LBF grant will fund the purchase of technology to equip the West Louisville office.

Child Advocacy Center: The Child Advocacy Center at the Family and Children's Place is the only facility of its kind in Kentucky providing services to child victims up to age 17 with compassionate, coordinated intervention and investigation of child sex abuse. The LBF grant will be used to pay expenses for a highly trained forensic interviewer to record a child's testimony and for lab kits used to gather and preserve evidence for later use at trial in prosecuting child sexual offenses.

Printing Marketing of "My Mom, the Lawyer": Mothers Esquire is a local non-profit with a national network of over 7,500 members advocating for policies that promote gender equity in the legal profession and practices that encourage retention of attorney talent during caregiving years. LBF funds will support the printing and marketing of "My Mom, the Lawyer" - a book written and designed to help children understand the legal profession and varied roles that mothers play within the profession.

Immigration Legal Services: Kentucky Refugee Ministries provides legal services to immigrants who have resettled in the Louisville area. Many of these immigrants need to file applications with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for permanent residence status or to petition for asylum. The LBF grant will provide partial fee subsidies for immigrants who cannot afford to pay the entire cost of prerparing and filing these documents.

Advocacy Academy: CASA provides advocacy services to children with active cases in Family Court. To increase the number of volunteer advocates, CASA must continually train and provide education. The LBF grant will support CASA's "Advocacy Academy" program and increase its number of trainings to boost volunteers' advocacy skillset and the understanding of interrelated child welfare, justice and medical systems.

Volunteer Corps: In partnership with the Legal Aid Society, the LBA seeks to simplify the pro bono process for both volunteers and those seeking legal assistance. The partners will establish a single "Volunteer Corps" which will be a one-stop-shop for both volunteers to access pro bono opportunities, and for potential clients and community groups to learn about the request pro bono assistance. The partners will create a pro bono website which will be the advertised place where attorneys can go to offer their services and where members of our community can seek pro bono assistance. LBF grant monies will help in the design and maintenance of this one-stop website.