Pro bono program boosted for indigent civil litigants

It’s a common problem, according to Greg Linhares, the clerk of court in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri: Citizens arrive at his office and try to file civil claims pro se, but confusion sets in.

“People get frustrated because they’re filling out forms they don’t understand,” said Linhares, “and we’re not allowed to give them any guidance.”

To address that issue, the clerk’s office and The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis have created a new pro bono opportunity: The Legal Advice Clinic.

Starting Aug. 7, a volunteer attorney will set up shop every other Wednesday in a small space adjacent to the clerk’s office for a two-hour bloc — one hour for walk-ins, the other hour for appointments. The lawyers will help pro se and indigent litigants who wish to file civil claims related to civil-rights, employment, disability and other matters. The attorney will advise them on whether they are in the proper venue, have standing, are filing within the statute of limitations and are naming the appropriate defendants.

Dan Barnett, the assistant executive director of operations at BAMSL, said this program is modeled on a similar one launched in bankruptcy court approximately one year ago. A small stipend of $50 per hour will be available for volunteer attorneys, Barnett added, but the organizers are “relying primarily on pro bono hours.”

Volunteers are definitely needed, Barnett said. So far, eight have signed up.

Wildwood attorney Michele Inman is one of them. The opportunity piqued her interest, she said, because her practice is fairly new and this offered a way to familiarize herself with federal procedures and the clerks themselves. Plus, she simply wanted to help people.

“One of the reasons I went to law school in the first place is that federal and state court systems can be intimidating for a lot of people,” she said, “and they may have a right that’s been violated, but it can be such a drawn-out and emotional process. A lot of times, these violations are not rectified.”

Aside from the new clinic, the clerk’s office also is trying to grow the pool of attorneys ready to be judicially appointed to represent pro se and civil litigants whose claims have survived a motion to dismiss. To spark more interest among members of the bar in doing that reduced-fee work, the clerk’s office has raised the reimbursement rates from $2,500 to $5,000 for attorneys’ fees and from $5,000 to $10,000 for district court expenses (or more with approval).

In addition, an attorney’s service as limited-scope counsel in mediation for indigent and pro se parties now is eligible for reimbursement at these same rates.

Lastly, the clerk has raised the reimbursement of bankruptcy-court expenses from $500 to $1,000.

“We’re doing this to provide equal access to justice for all litigants,” Linhares said. “Some people think the court isn’t helping them. We want them to have assistance, but we can’t provide it, so this is an avenue for them to get help in the right way.”