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| Find Your Closest Legal Aid Program |
The Need for Lawyer VolunteersIn the general population, Virginia has one lawyer per every 349 people.
That's not the case for the poor. Virginia has just one legal aid lawyer for every 6,184 people living in poverty. Low-income individuals' hopes for legal representation are dim without the help of professional attorneys like you. Virginia has 10 legal aid programs that serve low-income families and individuals. Their staffs range from eight employees to 80, and their offices are in urban settings and small towns. They welcome your assistance. Each is described below. Can you assist one of Virginia's legal aid providers in serving low-income families and individuals? Lawyers who do so can make a difference in the basics of a client's life: income, shelter, food, health care, education and family stability.
Program profilesBlue Ridge Legal Services Inc. (www.brls.org)
Employment possibilitiesCurrent openings are posted on the Blue Ridge Legal Services website. Starting salary for a new attorney is $51,006 plus a $5,000 LRAP from LSCV. Blue Ridge Legal Services averages five to six summer law clerks each year. Interested individuals should contact the managing attorney of the specific office where you'd like to clerk. Candidates should secure their own funding or work as a volunteer. The office can suggest funding sources and cooperates in the process of securing funds. To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about Blue Ridge Legal Services, see its website. Central Virginia Legal Aid Society, Inc. (www.cvlas.org)
Special projects that focus on client populations include:
To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about CVLAS, see its website. Legal Aid Justice Center (www.justice4all.org)
Each year, legal representation by the center benefits more than 3,500 people. It seeks to identify high-impact cases to tackle the systemic problems affecting many people who qualify for free legal services under federal poverty guidelines. Workshops and community education materials reach more than 5,000 people. That reach is broadened by the center's voice in administrative hearings and in the General Assembly, as well as in the courts and social service agencies, among others. Program practice areas address:
To volunteerContact the executive director: Email submissions must be followed with a hard copy request for consideration. For additional information, see the website. The Legal Aid Society of Eastern Virginia Inc. (www.laseva.org/)
To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about The Legal Aid Society of Eastern Virginia, see its website. Legal Aid Society of Roanoke Valley (www.lasrv.org/)
Its Domestic Violence Prevention Program provides victims with help getting protective orders, custody, child and spousal support, divorce, housing and other assistance essential to escaping abuse. The program is financed through a state grant from the Virginia Domestic Violence Victims Fund. To volunteerContact the senior attorney: For additional information about Legal Aid Society of Roanoke Valley, see its website. Legal Services of Northern Virginia (www.lsnv.org)
Practice areas include:
To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about LSNV, see its website. Legal Aid Works (www.legalaidworks.org)Founded in 1973, the attorneys and paralegals at Legal Aid Works give priority to cases involving housing conditions, loss of housing, income maintenance, health, family support, prevention of family violence and immigration. A bilingual attorney and paralegal provide outreach services and representation in immigration cases to the Hispanic community in the service area. Offices are in:
Practice areas include:
To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about Legal Aid Works, see its website. Southwest Virginia Legal Aid Society (www.svlas.org)
Special programs:
To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about Southwest Virginia Legal Aid Society, see its website. Virginia Legal Aid Society (www.vlas.org)
Special programs:
To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about Virginia Legal Aid Society, see its website. Virginia Poverty Law Center (www.vplc.org)
Each attorney specializes in one of the following areas:
Employment possibilitiesVirginia Poverty Law Center usually has one to three summer law clerks and sometimes a school-year clerk position. The center assists students in their efforts to obtain third-party funding. Starting salary for a new attorney is $48,000 plus a $5,000 LRAP from LSCV. Employee benefits include health, life and disability insurance and an 8 percent contribution of salaries to a retirement plan. To volunteerContact the executive director: For additional information about Virginia Poverty Law Center, see its website. |
Founded in 1977, its staff of 12 attorneys provides free legal assistance in civil matters of critical importance to low-income residents
of the Shenandoah Valley and Roanoke Valley. Offices are in:
Case priorities include: 
Founded in 1974, its staff of 27, 10 of them attorneys, provides legal advice, brief service, negotiation, litigation and representation
in administrative hearings. It also provides information and advice through clinics and community education, and partners with local, state and national groups that support legal aid and organizations that provide service to its clients. Offices are
in:
Founded in 1967, its staff of 25 attorneys and seven paralegals and community organizers provides civil legal services
throughout Central Virginia. Services assist low-income families, at-risk children, low-wage immigrant workers, institutionalized people and other vulnerable populations statewide. In its quest to seek equal justice for all, the center also seeks
to root out inequities and exploitation that keep people in poverty. The Legal Aid Justice Center receives no funding from the federal Legal Services Corporation. Offices are in:
Founded in 1966, its 21 attorneys and four paralegals promote the equal application of justice and work
to remove impediments to fairness for low-income and vulnerable families of Eastern Virginia. Offices are in:
Founded in 1966, this is Virginia's oldest staff attorney model legal aid society. Its four Roanoke-based
attorneys employ legal services to identify and resolve the most critical civil injustices facing low-income people in an eight-county area surrounding Roanoke. The organization routinely lobbies legislative and administrative bodies on behalf of
its clients. Funding comes from multiple sources.
Founded in 1980, its 31 attorneys and three paralegals provide legal advice and advocacy for families and individuals
who face the loss or deprivation of a critical human need, such as food, shelter, income, medical care, education, family stability or personal safety. Offices are in:
Founded in 1972, its 16 attorneys and eight paralegals, four of which work in the centralized intake unit, champion equal
justice for low-income Virginians and work to remedy the conditions that burden this vulnerable community. Offices are in:
Founded in 1977, its 14 attorneys and eight paralegals provide legal assistance to low-income people and champion equal
justice. Offices are in:
Founded in 1978, its seven attorneys provide leadership, support, training, public education and statewide advocacy to address and speak
out about the civil legal needs of Virginia’s low-income population. One paralegal is a lending coordinator. Outreach and community education are important parts of its mission. The center does not generally handle individual cases unless local legal
aid offices request VPLC to be co-counsel. However, Virginia Poverty Law Center will handle individual cases in which it is determined that representation will help fulfill the mission.
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