The Delaware Legal Services Agencies and the Delaware Bar Foundation are pleased to announce the launch of a new, innovative website which has been designed to replace the Delaware Legal HelpLink telephone service. DELegalHelpLink.org will provide contact information for a legal services agency, state agency or social services organization tailored to the specific legal needs identified by a user.
The Delaware Legal Services Agencies and the Delaware Bar Foundation are pleased to announce the launch of a new, innovative website which has been designed to replace the Delaware Legal HelpLink telephone service. DELegalHelpLink.org will provide contact information for a legal services agency, state agency or social services organization tailored to the specific legal needs identified by a user. If the user does not qualify for legal assistance from a legal services agency, state agency or social services organization, s/he will be provided a link to the Lawyer Referral Service on the Delaware State Bar Association website. The Delaware Legal HelpLink website (www.DELegalHelpLink.org) is available to the public 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and provides access to forty percent more agencies than were available through the website’s predecessor.
“Delaware Legal HelpLink provides Delawareans with convenient access to important legal services across our state, and other social services provided by the State of Delaware and our partners,” said Governor John Carney. “This new website, www.delegalhelplink.org, will help connect Delawareans with those services in a more efficient way – 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Thank you to Delaware’s nonprofit legal services providers, and other members of Delaware’s esteemed legal community, for their leadership and partnership on this important work.”
“The Delaware Judiciary congratulates Delaware’s nonprofit civil legal services providers on the launch of their new online resource for matching low-income litigants with the legal help they need. We are particularly pleased that this new service will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. More needs to be done, but this new, modern Legal HelpLink is another tool that will assist in providing better access to justice for all Delawareans,” said Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice Leo E. Strine, Jr.
Delaware Attorney General Matthew Denn said “Like many similar organizations around the country, Delaware’s legal services organizations have faced dwindling resources that have challenged their ability to assist Delawareans in need. The new DELegalHelpLink.org web site is a creative and effective way of guiding Delawareans to legal help in this challenging fiscal environment. Delaware’s bar has an outstanding tradition of providing free legal services to those who cannot afford attorneys, and DELegalHelpLink.org will be a great tool in directing those Delawareans eligible for free legal help to the right organization, and also directing those Delawareans who can afford to pay for legal help to attorneys who can help them with their specific problems. Moving forward, I hope that our state and federal governments will recognize the critical importance of these legal services organizations and enhance their support for them.”
DELegalHelpLink.org is provided as a public service by the Delaware Bar Foundation, in partnership with Delaware’s nonprofit civil legal services providers and other justice community partners:
- The Delaware Bar Foundation (DBF). The Delaware Bar Foundation’s mission is to improve the administration of justice in Delaware by 1) providing legal services for the poor, 2) promoting study and research in the field of law, 3) fostering knowledge of citizenship rights and responsibilities and 4) enhancing public respect for the rule of law.
- Legal Services Corporation of Delaware, Inc. (LSCD), a non-profit law firm and community education organization assisting low-income families in Delaware.
- Community Legal Aid Society, Inc. (CLASI), a private, non-profit law firm dedicated to providing civil legal services to Delawareans who have low income, disabilities, are age 60 and over, or are victims of domestic violence or other crimes, including immigrants.
- Delaware Volunteer Legal Services, Inc. (DVLS), which serves indigent residents throughout the State of Delaware by providing quality, pro bono legal services.
- The Delaware State Bar Association (DSBA), a voluntary bar association for members of the Delaware Bar.
- The DELegalHelpLink.org website was developed and is maintained by Pro Bono Net, using the LawHelp.org platform. Pro Bono Net is a national nonprofit organization based in New York City and San Francisco. The LawHelp.org platform has been created for people living on low-incomes and the legal organizations that serve them.