In partnership with the Colorado Lawyers Committee, the Commission re-launched a statewide program that provides free monthly legal help clinics via Zoom in communities across rural  Colorado. People sign up through their local libraries to receive legal advice from an attorney for free. Since the project launched in August, monthly clinics have been established in each of 16 rural libraries, and new rural libraries are being added monthly. 

T his year marked the launch of a long-awaited federal grant funded program to drive innovative legal resources to Colorado’s driest rural legal deserts. This work has initially focused in Southeastern Colorado, building stakeholder networks with the region’s legal and non-legal organizations and learning about the context and extent of legal needs. This has allowed us to finalize strategic plan leveraging existing resources to overcome the extreme scarcity of lawyers.

This program brings law students eager to provide legal help to numerous Colorado communities in need of more lawyers. This summer internship program is designed to embed students in each community and build pathways to eventual careers. This year, the program drew national interest, with 65 applicants from 17 different law schools. Pairs of law students were warmly received by local legal communities and assisted government and nonprofit organizations. 

The successful passage of HB24-1286 resulted in the creation of a new state funding mechanism for legal aid based on modest court surcharges. The fund– estimated to bring in $2M per year–will be directed by a newly formed Equal Justice Authority Board, and the Commission will oversee the distribution of annual cash grants to qualifying Colorado nonprofit legal aid organizations.