The website listed above is a website that Northwest Justice Project maintains in collaboration with our legal services partners. It is a noteworthy resource and it occurred to me a column about the website would be useful.
In these difficult economic times, communities are experiencing reductions in all types of services. As a result, it is imperative the public know about resources like WashingtonLawHelp. We recognize we can only assist a mere fraction of the people who are in need of legal services. This website is one of many ways we try to broadly assist the public in tackling legal issues. The website is intended for use by the public to empower people to advocate for themselves. Navigating legal issues can be confusing and intimidating; however, there are many legal issues people can navigate without a lawyer.
The website has hundreds of materials on many legal issues, including family law, domestic violence/anti-harassment, consumer, housing, government benefits, health, elder law, youth and education law, immigration, employment, veterans and military, Native American, civil rights, etc. The website has many portions of its materials translated into other languages, including Cambodian, Hindi, Chinese, Laotian, Somali, and Russian—to name just a few. The entire website can switch to Spanish by clicking the link “Avuda en Español” in the top right corner.
We maintain the website and its content and do our best to keep the materials up to date. Many of the materials have a date on them indicating when they were last updated. If it is an older date, it may mean nothing in the law has changed, or it may mean we have not yet updated the material. Of recent, some laws have been changing rapidly and often. In particular, the laws and regulations regarding government benefits have been an ever moving target. If you see something on the website that you are concerned may be out of date, you can submit your comment or question by clicking the “feedback’ link at the top of the webpage.
The materials are written in easy to understand, non-lawyer language. We have not authored all the materials. There are links to various resources that we believe are reliable places to start when you are trying to educate yourself about your legal rights.
As an example of just one of the many topics covered on this website, click on the family law link and you will find extensive materials. The Washington courts require family law cases to be filed on mandatory forms. These forms can be complicated and confusing and there are many forms. Our website provides downloadable materials that provide detailed information to help you figure out which forms you need to use and how to fill them out. We provide sample family law forms on line and you can also download the mandatory forms for FREE at the Washington court website at http://www.courts.wa.gov/forms/.
We recently added interactive options that walk you through how to draft certain documents, which include some of the less complicated family law issues. We currently have interviews covering:
• Domestic Violence Order for Protection
• Filing for Divorce (no minor children of the marriage)
• Finishing a Divorce by Agreement or Default (no minor children of the marriage)
• Demand Letter for Return of a Rental Security Deposit
In closing, do not put your head in the sand and ignore a problem, especially if it is legal in nature. There are usually limited time periods in which you can respond to protect your legal rights. If you are not sure if you have a legal problem, check out www.washingtonlawhelp.org.
Check out our newly launched http://nwjustice.org/clear-online, which provides 24-hour on line application to see if you are eligible for free civil legal services at Northwest Justice Project—more information to follow in next month’s column. You can also call our toll-free intake and referral hotline commonly known as “CLEAR” (Coordinated Legal Education Advice and Referral) at 1-888-201-1014, Mondays through Fridays 9:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. If you are a senior, 60 and over, please call 1-888-387-7111; you may be eligible regardless of income. Language interpreters are available.
Sarah Glorian is the senior attorney for the Aberdeen office of the Northwest Justice Project, a private, non-profit legal aid organization providing free representation to low-income residents in Grays Harbor and Pacific counties.
