Nick and Tim’s Story

Born with a developmental disability, Nick lived in a group home for adults and relied on his parents to pay for his care. Both Nick and his parents considered him very lucky to live there: as a working ranch, the group home gives him the opportunity to work with animals and be a part of …

MLSA’s Rural Law Program Named One of the Best in the Nation

MLSA’s Rural Incubator Project for Lawyers (RIPL) has been selected by the Rural Justice Collaborative (RJC) Advisory Council as one of nine national Rural Innovation Sites to serve as a model for other rural justice programs throughout the nation. Established in 2018, RIPL aims to reduce the justice gap that prevents low and moderate income …

MLSA Offers Support for Student Loan Forgiveness Program

Last month, MLSA joined with the National Consumer Law Center and the student Borrower Protection Center to file a brief before the Montana Supreme Court in support of an appeal by James Reavis, who seeks relief after his federal student loan servicer miscounted his student loan payments for eligibility for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness …

Accessing Justice on Tribal Land

For people living on tribal land throughout the US, figuring out in which court a legal case will be heard can be confusing. A dizzying array of treaties, federal laws and case law determine where a case will be heard and even, in criminal cases, what charges will be filed. In many cases, such as …

MLSA’s Tracie Poindexter on Building an Better Online Intake System

MLSA’s Program Administrator Tracie Poindexter was recently recognized by the Legal Services Corporation for her efforts to build a better online intake system for MLSA! As technology has evolved to become a part of our everyday lives, MLSA has worked to develop an intake system that takes advantage of different technologies in order to better …

New Technology Funding Will Help Increase Legal Services to Rural Crime Victims

Helena MT  –  Rural crime victims in Montana will soon have more services and information to help them navigate their complex situations. The National Crime Victim Law Institute (NCVLI) recently awarded $749,156 over two years to the Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA) to implement innovative technology to deliver no-cost legal services and information to crime …

MLSA meets with Montana Delegation in Washington D.C.

MLSA Executive Director Alison Paul, Development Director Michelle Potts, and Board Member Andy Patten recently traveled to Washington D.C. to meet with Montana's US and Congressional Delegation. Over the course of two days, MLSA's staff met with Senator Tester, Senator Daines, and Representative Gianforte, first at the weekly Montana Coffee (pictured below) and then in …

New Report Released on Civil Legal Aid in Montana

On December 28, 2016, the Access to Justice Commission released a report detailing its findings on the state of civil legal aid in Montana.  The report, which is based on information gathered during seven public forums on access to justice held from October 2015 to October 2016, describes both the challenges and successes of increasing …