With funding for civil legal aid in Florida at its lowest point in 10 years, a new study shows that every dollar spent on civil legal services for the state’s low-income residents yields more than $7 in economic impacts.

Commissioned by The Florida Bar Foundation, the study found that 33 Florida nonprofit civil legal aid organizations produced $600 million in economic impact with $83 million in total funding from sources including the Foundation, the Legal Services Corporation, local governments, donors and others in 2015.

“Equal justice under law is not only a basic underpinning of our democracy; it’s also good economic policy,” said Florida Bar Foundation President Matthew G. Brenner. “This study adds to a large body of empirical data – from Florida as well as other states – that clearly demonstrates that society at large benefits when the rights of the poorest and most vulnerable among us are protected.”

One of the largest economic impacts of civil legal aid results from assistance in obtaining the federal benefits, child support, wages and unemployment compensation to which Florida residents are entitled, income that is in turn spent within Florida. The federal benefits obtained for legal aid clients include:

• $120.6 million in Social Security benefits
• $70.7 million in Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements, and
• $2.7 million in veterans’ benefits.

With civil legal aid helping capture $264.3 million in such income and reimbursements for Floridians, Florida businesses are estimated to have experienced $274.8 million in increased income in 2015. Investment in civil legal aid also is estimated to have generated 2,243 new jobs.

Not only does civil legal aid put dollars directly into the economy, it also saves money for the government, businesses, nonprofits, clients and others in a variety of ways. The study found that:

• $2.9 million in costs for emergency shelter were avoided for low-income families who, with the assistance of legal aid advocates, were able to avoid eviction or gain time to seek alternative housing;
• $50.6 million in foreclosure costs were avoided by low-income homeowners, lenders, neighbors and local governments;
• $6.9 million in costs associated with domestic violence were avoided.

The study points out that civil legal aid also helps ease the burden on Florida’s court system by helping people who are self-represented navigate the system and helping the public understand legal processes. Civil legal aid organizations also support and leverage the pro bono work of private attorneys. In 2015, volunteer attorneys in Florida completed nearly 12,000 pro bono cases through legal aid and pro bono programs, donating 79,000 hours of time valued at more than $9.5 million.

“Civil legal aid helps ensure fairness in our justice system,” said Florida Chief Justice Jorge Labarga. “But its benefits extend well beyond that. A large number of our citizens fall in the legal services gap. They just cannot afford a lawyer at today’s prices. This study shows that when they have a good way to resolve their civil legal problems, they can remain important assets to their families, on their jobs and in their communities.”

Results of the study suggest that every additional $100,000 in funding enables legal aid organizations to generate $719,000 in economic benefits. The analysis was conducted by The Resource for Great Programs, a research firm with more than 20 years’ experience conducting similar economic impact studies.

The economic return-per-dollar findings are similar to those from legal aid economic impact studies conducted in other states, including Texas ($7.42), Iowa ($6.71), Tennessee ($11.20), and Virginia ($5.27), and by other researchers. A previous study performed by Florida TaxWatch in 2010 using 2008 data found an economic impact of $4.78 for every dollar spent on civil legal aid in Florida.

American Bar Association President-elect Hilarie Bass, co-president of the international law firm of Greenberg Traurig, said funding is needed not only to provide direct services to low-income clients, but also to implement technology that will make the legal system more accessible to all.

“Through innovation, we can maximize the tools that technology affords us to make legal information more readily available to all persons otherwise unable to afford an attorney,” Bass said. “We can provide pro se litigants with greater access to the information and forms they need to navigate a complex judicial system, and recognize that there are multiple new forms of assistance for the millions of Americans who seek legal assistance, but who have been turned away for years for lack of funding.”

The results of the study will be the topic of three press conferences:

11:30 A.M., FEB. 2, MIAMI

American Bar Association Midyear Meeting

Gallery 3, 4th Floor - JW Marriott Marquis, 255 Biscayne Boulevard Way

Featuring: American Bar Association President-Elect Hilarie Bass,

Florida Bar President William J. Schifino Jr., and Florida Bar Foundation President Matthew Brenner

10:00 A.M. FEB. 2, ST. PETERSBURG

Florida Philanthropic Network Statewide Summit on Philanthropy

Vinoy Grand Ballroom Foyer - Vinoy Renaissance Hotel, 501 5th Avenue NE

Featuring: Past Florida Bar President Gwynne Young,

Florida Bar Foundation President-Elect Jewel White,

and Dean Mead Law Firm Tampa Office Managing Shareholder

& 2016 TBBJ BusinessWoman of the Year Angie’s Award Winner Melanie Griffin

10:00 A.M., FEB. 3, TALLAHASSEE

Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice

Horizon Ballroom, 8th Floor - Hotel Duval, 415 North Monroe Street

Featuring: Florida Chief Justice Jorge Labarga,

Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice Executive Committee Chair Gregory W. Coleman, Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice member Donny MacKenzie, and

Florida Bar Foundation CEO/Executive Director Bruce B. Blackwell

A live stream of the press conference and commission meeting will be at http://wfsu.org/gavel2gavel/

*All members of the press attending the press conference at the American Bar Association Midyear Meeting in Miami need to complete a free registration via this online registration link. Accredited journalists can also register on-site or pick up their preregistered press credentials at the Hyatt Regency Miami (Riverfront Hall, Lobby Level), beginning at 2 p.m. on Feb. 1. A press room for accredited reporters will be provided at the Hyatt’s Riverfront Hall (lobby level) starting at 9 a.m. on Feb. 2. The room will be open daily thereafter from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and will close one hour after the adjournment of the House of Delegates on Feb. 6. The press room phone number is (305) 379-4559.

About The Florida Bar Foundation

The mission of The Florida Bar Foundation (www.TheFloridaBarFoundation.org), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is to provide greater access to justice. Through strategic grantmaking, the Foundation funds civil legal aid and projects to improve the administration of justice and increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the legal aid delivery system. In addition to providing funds directly to Florida legal aid organizations, the Foundation engages in catalytic philanthropy by investing in training, technology, technical assistance, assessment and capacity-building for the legal aid delivery system and works to develop and expand innovative pro bono initiatives. Principal support for the Foundation’s charitable activities comes from the Interest on Trust Accounts (IOTA) Program implemented by the Florida Supreme Court in 1981. Additional support comes from gifts made by Florida attorneys, law firms, corporations, foundations and others.