We Are From The Government And We Are Here To Help You
One of the things that separates personal injury lawyers from most other kinds of attorneys is that our clients are regular people. Meaning they are folks who do not deal with the legal system on a professional basis.
Because we charge attorney's fees on a contingent basis, our clients are able to get access to experienced, aggressive legal representation without paying an attorney's fee up front.
Many people are not so fortunate. There are many cases where the only way to get a lawyer is to pay an out of pocket fee that may range fron several hundred to several thousand dollars, depending on the case. This is out of reach of many working folks, so they have no practical alternative to representing themselves. You see this a lot in landlord-tenant cases, special education, and family law.
In addition to funding low-cost legal services through the Maryland Legal Services Corporation, the Maryland Judiciary is looking for other ways to improve access to the courts for pro se litigants, the handicapped, people with language difficulties, and others who have barriers to using the court system.
The Maryland Access to Justice Commission is having an open meeting to address the concerns of the public on these issues. It is October 23, 2009 at Chesapeake College. If you have had problems using the court system in Maryland, you should attend. The system needs this information to figure out ways to prevent people from having problems in using the Maryland courts. Since this is one of the rare occasions where the government cares what individual citizens think, it is best to take advantage.
