Access to Justice Opportunities
The State Bar of South Dakota formed Access to Justice (A2J) to make legal services accessible to all South Dakota citizens. A2J provides legal services to individuals living at or below 125% of the federal poverty guidelines; survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking or stalking living at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines; and individuals with disabilities, the elderly and veterans who live at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines.
Access to Justice (A2J) offers pro bono and reduced-rate service opportunities to South Dakota attorneys that are a member in good standing with the State Bar of South Dakota. Reduced-rate service opportunities are provided through A2J judicare and A2J modest means cases.
Judicare case opportunities provide the attorney with a one-time, reduced-rate payment for volunteering for the A2J judicare case. Payment for judicare cases is made to the attorney through A2J judicare funding.
Modest means case opportunities are client-paid, and the attorney volunteering for the case agrees to handle the case at the reduced modest means hourly rate ($100 per hour) and retainer cap ($650 per retainer). If the initial modest means retainer is exhausted, the attorney may request additional modest means retainers from the client (also $650 each) until the matter is complete. All modest means billing and payment is handled through the attorney’s office.
*Attorneys interested in A2J reduced-rate case opportunities are encouraged to first volunteer for a pro bono case through Access to Justice.
For more information, contact Denise Langley at access.to.justice@sdbar.net.
