Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation Awards $786,000 to Houston Groups to Provide Legal Aid to the Poor.AUSTIN, Texas -- Eight nonprofit organizations in Houston will receive grants totaling $786,226 from the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation to provide civil legal assistance, such as advice or representation, to individuals who cannot afford attorneys. The Foundation will disburse dis·burse tr.v. dis·bursed, dis·burs·ing, dis·burs·es To pay out, as from a fund; expend. See Synonyms at spend. [Obsolete French desbourser, from Old French desborser $11.8 million statewide to providers of legal aid over the 2005 grant year. Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse will receive $179,082; Houston Area Women's Center will receive $20,000; Catholic Charities-Galveston/Houston will receive $102,654; University of Houston Law School will receive $62,546; YMCA YMCA in full Young Men's Christian Association Nonsectarian, nonpolitical Christian lay movement that aims to develop high standards of Christian character among its members. International Services will receive $102,654; Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program will receive $178,995; NAACP NAACP in full National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Oldest and largest U.S. civil rights organization. It was founded in 1909 to secure political, educational, social, and economic equality for African Americans; W.E.B. Du Bois and Ida B. will receive $103,495; and South Texas College of Law South Texas College of Law is a private American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law school and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS). Located downtown Houston, Texas, it was founded in 1923—the oldest law school in Houston and the third-oldest in will receive $36,800. In addition to the organizations located in Houston, the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation has allocated $2,369,145 to Nacogdoches-based Lone Star Lone Star (or Lonestar) may refer to:
The Supreme Court of Texas created the Foundation (www.teajf.org) in 1984 to administer funds earmarked for the provision of civil legal aid to low-income Texans. Currently, the Foundation manages funds from the Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA IOLTA Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts ) Program; the Basic Civil Legal Services legal services n. the work performed by a lawyer for a client. (BCLS BCLS abbr. basic cardiac life support ) Program, a court filing fee add-on; the Crime Victims Civil Legal Services (CVCLS) Program; and private donations. Unlike the criminal system, Texans facing civil legal problems are not guaranteed an attorney. Each year, legal aid organizations assist more than 100,000 poor Texans with their civil legal needs in matters such as protection from domestic violence, access to medical care and landlord-tenant issues. "Legal aid advocates work tirelessly to provide much-needed civil legal services to the most vulnerable people in our society -- from the elderly to the abused to those with disabilities," said Lisa Melton, director of grants for the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation. "With these grant funds, legal aid organizations can continue their wonderful work of providing access to justice for those in seemingly hopeless situations." To be eligible for legal aid under IOLTA and BCLS funding, an individual must not earn more than $11,638 per year. To be eligible under CVCLS, an individual must not earn more than $17,456. However, because the need for legal services is so great, legal aid groups only meet about 25 percent of the legal needs of poor and low-income Texans. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 503,000 Harris County residents, or 15 percent of the county population, live below poverty level. For a complete list of TEAJF 2005 grant awards, go to www.teajf.org. |
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