A2JC Dispatch – February 2025 Issue
The February Issue
In this month’s Dispatch, we highlight A2JC’s partnership with the MSBA Lawyer Assistance Program to launch a Secondary Trauma Workshop Series, addressing the mental health challenges faced by public interest lawyers working with trauma survivors. We also report on key legislative advocacy efforts during MSBA Day, where members urged lawmakers to secure funding for the Access to Counsel in Evictions (ACE) law, which has proven effective in preventing evictions and saving the state millions. In local news, we examine a report confirming that tenants with legal representation are far more likely to avoid eviction and spotlight the upcoming Partners for Justice Conference. Nationally, we explore AI-driven innovations in legal aid, such as NYU Law’s AI-powered tenant rights bot, and discuss new research on expanding access to justice at the International A2J Forum. You can find all these stories and more in this month’s Dispatch.
A2J Commission News
- A2JC Partners with MSBA Lawyer Assistance Program for Secondary Trauma Workshop Series This partnership was brought to bear to address the mental health challenges of working with clients who face trauma. Members of the A2JC’s Public Interest Law Committee expressed a need for more mental health support, so A2JC partnered with MSBA’s LAP Program to bring a series on Secondary Trauma. Held over four sessions in February and March, the workshop explores the impact of working with survivors of trauma, identifies individual and systemic symptoms of secondary trauma, and provides specific mindfulness-based practices to support you as you navigate the waters of secondary trauma. Participants: learn how your brain and body react to witnessing trauma; discover how secondary trauma permeates organizations; try on specific mindfulness practices to help you manage your trauma exposure response; leave the program equipped with tools to support your well-being.
- Legislators Hear about the Need for Access to Counsel in Evictions Funding During MSBA Day On MSBA Day on February 11, 2025, MSBA members united to advocate with legislators on a key priority: Access to Counsel in Evictions Funding. The Access to Justice Commission and MSBA strongly urged legislators to vote favorably on SB154/ HB103, which lifts the sunset on $14 million in annual funding for the ACE law that goes into effect on June 30, 2027. Without this minimal level of funding, the ACE law will not be able to keep Marylanders housed and will also cost the state millions more. The ACE Law has already proven to be successful, with the following:
- Established Strong Foundation for Implementation. The ACE law is operational in all 24 jurisdictions. We have coordinated intake for the first time in civil legal aid history. Organizational systems have been upgraded to ensure data collection and evaluation. We have an Evictions Data Dashboard. Outreach is being done. 50 new attorneys, 25 paralegal and 22 other staff have been hired to implement the ACE law.
- The ACE Law Saves Our State Money. For every $1 invested, the state saves $4 in spending on shelters, law enforcement, emergency hospital visits and more, with the state having already saved $46M in the first year.
- The ACE Law is Effective at Keeping Marylanders Housed. 88% of tenants who wished to remain in their homes were able to do so!
- The ACE Law is a Humane Solution to the Eviction Crisis. Eviction is associated with many collateral consequences, including homelessness, loss of educational outcomes, declines in physical and mental health and much more. Instead of spending money on the back end correcting these harms, it is better to invest in the ACE law on the front end.
- The ACE Law Helps Correct Inequities in Eviction. Prior to the law’s passage, one study showed that Black women are 296% more likely to face an eviction than White men in one Maryland jurisdiction. Currently, 72% of ACE clients are Black, while Black people are 31% of Maryland’s population. Similarly, 72% of clients are female, while women make up 51% of the state’s population.
- The ACE Law Helps Maryland Businesses. When employees are evicted, it destabilizes employees and affects a company’s bottom line.
Tips from Maryland Judiciary’s Access to Justice Department. We are pleased to offer recurring content from the Maryland Judiciary’s Access to Justice Department as part of the A2J Dispatch.
- Revised Divorce Video Series The Administrative Office of the Courts recently published a new seven-part divorce video series. The videos assist self-represented litigants understand the basics of filing for divorce in Maryland. The seven videos cover, respectively, the basics of divorce in Maryland, what happens after filing for divorce, the ground of mutual consent, alimony, how property is divided, custody, and restoration of a former name. The series comes with an accompanying fact sheet, and each video has both Spanish and English captioning available. The public may view the videos in the Court Help Video Library on mdcourts.gov.”
Local A2J News
- Renters Avoid Evictions When They Have a Lawyer, Maryland Report States ACE is not only about keeping families housed and communities stable; it is about ensuring that justice is accessible to all Marylanders, regardless of race, gender, or income, Reena Shah, chair of the ACE Task Force and executive director of the Maryland Access to Justice Commission, said in a press release. This program is a national model on how to implement humane, but also cost-effective solutions.
- Save the Date for the Partners for Justice Conference! The Partners for Justice Conference takes place annually, and presents a unique opportunity for legal services program staff, the public and private bar, members of the judiciary, human services agencies, elected officials, and others to discuss critical issues facing the poor and underrepresented across the mid-Atlantic region and how we can improve access to justice.
- Innovations in Technology Conference 2025 This presentation covered how legal services organizations can work together to improve client referrals. In both North Carolina and Maryland – hard work is happening to make finding legal help easier.
- Lawsuit Alleges Assault, Retaliation By Prison Officers at Two Jessup Prisons An inmate at a prison in Howard County sued the Maryland Department of Safety and Correctional Services on Wednesday, alleging he was beaten and faced retaliation at a second prison after he filed a complaint.
- Trauma-Informed Lawyering: Supporting Survivors of Domestic Violence This training, co-sponsored with Montgomery County Volunteer Lawyers Project, covers domestic violence, protection orders, and trauma-Informed approaches to lawyering with people who have experienced different kinds of trauma. There is no volunteer commitment needed for attorneys to access this training. An active bar license in any state is required.
- Lawsuit Alleges Example of DPSCS’s Failure to Get Timely Health Care for Prisoners Rather than calling 911 or seeking emergency medical care, DPSCS employees placed a limp, unconscious and bloody (Dechamps) back into the van, and continued to the work site, dropping off the other prisoners as planned, Dechamps alleges in a lawsuit against DPSCS.
National A2J News
- NYU Law Professor On His AI-Powered Tenants’ Rights Bot For many New York City tenants, prodding landlords to make repairs in their apartments can be an uphill battle, often involving long wait times and navigating complex legal procedures with limited access to legal assistance.
- AI and Legal Aid: A Generational Opportunity for Access to Justice The use of GenAI has the potential to transform legal aid and significantly reduce the US justice gap by improving legal service organizations’ efficiency, productivity, and ability to serve more clients.
- International Access to Justice Forum 2025 The International Access to Justice Forum 2025 will bring together a diverse group of scholars, researchers, practitioners, reformers, court and dispute resolution experts, and all who are committed to increasing access to justice to discuss exciting new research, theory, and policy developments in the global movement for civil justice.
- Access To Justice: Ohio Justice Bus The idea of mobile justice animated a group of Ohioans to launch the Ohio Justice Bus in 2019. They realized that too many of their community members lacked reliable access to attorneys to assist with pressing issues—from landlord/tenant disputes to family law matters.
- Access to Justice: Clinic Gives Evening Students Pro Bono Alternative The Loyola Project for the Innocent’s (LPI) second-annual Volunteer Night in January brought together students from an array of backgrounds and included students from the Hybrid JD Evening Program, which blends in-person, synchronous, and asynchronous instruction to allow for a regular on-campus commitment of one night a week.
- Harvard’s ‘Access to Justice Lab’ to Study Toledo Municipal Court’s Diversion Program The Toledo Municipal Court has announced that Harvard’s Access to Justice Lab will be studying its Up and Out Diversion program.
- Colorado Nonprofit Offering Immigrant Legal Aid Ordered to Stop Work By Feds The U.S. Department of Justice issued a stop work order to multiple immigrant advocacy organizations around the country, including the one that funds Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network.