Legal aid agencies air impact of economy

More than 400 legal aid advocates from across Illinois attended a two-day conference last month in Chicago to participate in 33 workshops and interact with colleagues.

Among goals of the conference was raising awareness of the impact on low-income people of predatory lending, abusive credit practices and the sub-prime mortgage crisis.

Supported by an allocation of $125,000 from the Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois, the program received a supplemental grant of $5,000 from the Illinois Bar Foundation and additional funding from the Chicago Bar Foundation.

Among the organizations represented are Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation, Prairie State Legal Services, Chicago Volunteer Legal Services Foundation, Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago, Illinois Legal Aid Online, Public Interest Law Initiative and Coordinated Advice and Referral Program for Legal Services.

Participants received skills training and topical information about legal developments and emerging practice trends that affect the legal aid community.

Illinois Legal Aid Online provided a new 12-minute video, “Doing Justice: Stories from the Front Lines of Legal Aid,” that shares experiences of attorneys and paralegals who help eligible individuals and families level the playing field.

The Nov. 13 and 14 conference workshops were webcast and will be available for viewing soon at www.IllinoisLegalAdvocate.org by clicking on Legal Resources and then on Video Library.