The Justice in Government Project (JGP) helps bridge the gap between what researchers can tell us and what policymakers need to know about civil legal aid. This page provides JGP publications, webinars, and media mentions that illustrate how civil legal aid can help advance access to justice. 

The Justice in Government Project’s Featured Publications

Karlee Naylon, Anna deDufour and Karen Lash published an article in the Summer 2020 issue of the MIE Journal titled, “Civil Legal Aid Funding in the Time of COVID-19”. The article explains how new and old sources of federal pass-through grants can address civil legal problems tied to the COVID-19 fallout and provides examples of states that have incorporated civil legal aid into COVID-related funding opportunities.

Karlee M. Naylon and Karen Lash published an article in the Spring 2020 edition of The Guardian, a quarterly law journal published by the National Association of Counsel for Children. Read their article, “Using Legal Aid to Keep Families Together and Prevent Child Welfare Involvement”(starting on p.15).

Karlee M. Naylon and Karen Lash published an article, “How Can Civil Legal Aid Help Keep Families Together and Kids Out of Foster Care?”, in the April 2020 edition of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Children's Bureau newsletter.

Maha Jweied and Karen Lash published an article with the Center for American Progress, “Civil Justice Needs Federal Leadership”. It uncovers the civil justice crisis in the United States and the ways in which federal policymaking can incorporate civil legal aid into its suite of solutions for low-income and underserved individuals.

Casey Chiapetta and Karen Lash published an article in the MIE Journal as a special feature titled “How Civil Legal Aid Can Tap Federal Funds to Support Partnerships with Schools, Bar Associations, Courts, and Hospitals to Improve the Lives of Those Affected by Substance Use Disorders”.

Karen Lash published an article in the Winter 2019 issue of Dædalus, the Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, titled "Executive Branch Support for Civil Legal Aid".  The article explains how civil legal services are essential tools for making government programs more effective, efficient, and fair when they are included alongside other supportive services.

Webinars Featuring the Justice in Government Project

• Council for State Governments Clean Slate Clearinghouse, Reducing Barriers to Employment-Building Partnerships with Civil Legal Aid (The JGP Director Karen Lash and then Prince George’s County Local Workforce Development Board Executive Director Walter Simmons starts at about 14 minutes)
• National Legal Aid and Defenders Association (NLADA) and the Justice in Government Project (JGP), Combating the Opioid Epidemic: How Civil Legal Aid Helps Those Affected by the Opioid Crisis
• Pro Bono Net, LawHelp Interactive Monthly Call: Title IV-D and Child Support (funding discussion with the JGP’s Karen Lash starts at about 22 minutes)
• The ABA Resource Center for Access to Justice Initiatives and The Justice in Government Project co-hosted a webinar on Civil Legal Aid Funding in the Time of COVID-19. The panelists included: Shubi Deoras (ABA Resource Center for Access to Justice Initiatives), Karen A. Lash (JGP), Jim Bamberger (Washington State Office of Civil Legal Aid), Patrick Cicero (Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network), and Stephanie Harris (Ohio State Legal Services Association).

Other Media Featuring the Justice in Government Project

New Republic, "No Money, No Lawyer, No Justice"

JGP director Karen Lash was recognized in a New Republic article uncovering the inequities of the civil legal system and the individuals mobilizing to fix them. As the first executive director of the White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable during the Obama administration, Lash collaborated with 22 federal agencies to advance civil legal aid as a means to enhance government program effectiveness. The JGP replicates LAIR’s strategy at the state level. Read the article here.

Law360, "Karen Lash On Finding Legal Aid Funding In High Places"

Karen Lash was interviewed by Law360 in a series of discussions with leaders in the access to justice field. The results of the interview, covering Lash’s work in the Department of Justice and her current work with state executive branches to improve program outcomes through civil legal aid, were published in an article titled, “Karen Lash On Finding Legal Aid Funding In High Places”. Read the article here.