Lawyers for Poor Face Own Financial Struggles

By Trish Anderton on Tuesday, July 3, 2001.

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The cost of law school has risen sharply in recent years. That's not too much of a problem for lawyers making record salaries at big firms. But if you want to help Mediciad beneficiaries, or the environment, or indigent criminal defendants, repaying those law school loans can be a crippling burden.

JUDITH JONES WENT TO LAW SCHOOL WITH HIGH IDEALS. A DECADE AGO , JONES WAS WORKING AS A MANAGER IN A GOVERNMENT FOOD STAMP PROGRAM. SHE LIKED HELPING HER DISADVANTAGED CLIENTS, BUT SHE WANTED TO DO MORE.

002 114 what I saw // were a large population of folks who could use some advocacy and a stronger voice. // that spurred me on.

JONES ENROLLED IN LAW SCHOOL IN MASSACHUSETTS. AFTER SHE GRADUATED, SHE WAS THRILLED TO GET A JOB OFFER FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE LEGAL ASSISTANCE IN PORTSMOUTH, WORKING WITH ELDERLY AND INDIGENT CLIENTS. BUT THAT THRILL TURNED TO HORROR WHEN SHE REALIZED HOW HIGH RENTS WERE ON THE SEACOAST.

001 143 I just remember looking at paper and having wave of panic go // through my stomach and telling my husband we’re going to live in a cardboard box outside 495.

JONES AND HER HUSBAND EVENTUALLY FOUND A PLACE TO LIVE. FOUR YEARS LATER, SHE’S WORKING HAPPILY HERE IN HER MODEST LEGAL ASSISTANCE OFFICE. BUT SHE AND HER HUSBAND, A PSYCHIATRIC SOCIAL WORKER, ARE STILL JUST SQUEAKING BY. ONE BIG REASON FOR THAT IS HER LAW SCHOOL DEBT. JONES’S SALARY IS IN THE MID-30’S. HER STUDENT LOAN BILL IS A HEFTY 775-DOLLARS A MONTH. JONES AND HER HUSBAND DRIVE OLD CARS; THEY DON’T TAKE FANCY VACATIONS, AND SHE BUYS HER CLOTHES AT THRIFT STORES. JOHN TOBIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF NEW HAMPSHIRE LEGAL ASSISTANCE, SAYS MANY OF HIS YOUNG ASSOCIATES GO THROUGH SIMILAR STRUGGLES.

007 126 they end up having same housing dilemmas as our clients. They can’t afford to live in nh bc they have these huge loan payments htat are like a mortgage with no house. And they also are trying to live.

TOBIN SAYS IN RECENT YEARS IT WAS GETTING HARDER AND HARDER TO HIRE AND KEEP GOOD LAWYERS. FINALLY HE TURNED FOR HELP TO THE NEW HAMPSHIRE BAR FOUNDATION, A CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION THAT SUPPORTS GREATER ACCESS TO THE LEGAL SYSTEM. AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TINA ABRAMSON RECALLS, SHE AND TOBIN DECIDED THE MOST EFFECTIVE APPORACH WOULD BE A PROGRAM TO HELP LEGAL AID LAWYERS REPAY THEIR LOANS.

We didn’t have money for hi salaries but an incentive for recruiting people was debt forgiveness.

LAST YEAR THE BAR FOUNDATION BEGAN MAKING GRANTS TO A HANDFUL PUBLIC INTEREST LAWYERS. THE AMOUNTS RANGE FROM A THOUSAND TO 6-THOUSAND DOLLARS A YEAR, DEPENDING ON NEED. JUDITH JONES GETS ABOUT 3-THOUSAND DOLLARS. THAT COVERS ONLY ABOUT A THIRD OF HER STUDENT LOAN BILL. BUT JONES SAYS IT’S A HELP.

005 144 its relieved some pressure in the household. Bc that moneys there to pay loans, other money is there for necessities.

LEGAL AID DIRECTOR JOHN TOBIN SAYS THE PROGRAM HAS ALSO HELPED HIM RECRUIT AND RETAIN LAWYERS. AND IT’S ATTRACTED ATTENTION FROM NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS. ROBERT HIRSHON OF PORTLAND, MAINE IS THE INCOMING HEAD OF THE AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION. HE SAYS LAW SCHOOL DEBT IS A PROBLEM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY.

Whats happening now is people are saying we cant afford given the incredible squeeze cant affod to work in pub svc helping enviro, in legal defenders, in prosecutors offc, we cant work for the govt

HIRSHON HIMSELF GRADUATED FROM LAW SCHOOL IN THE MID SEVENTIES WITH JUST A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS IN DEBT. NOW, HE SAYS, THE DEMAND FOR EXPENSIVE CLINICAL PROGRAMS AND PERSONALIZED INSTRUCTION HAS DRIVEN THE PRICE OF LAW SCHOOL SKY-HIGH. HIRSHON SAYS THE AVERAGE STUDENT GRADUATING THIS YEAR WILL OWE SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF 90-THOUSAND DOLLARS. HE BELIEVES PART OF THE ANSWER IS A NATIONAL LOAN ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

007 25 we do belive if we can create sys sim to nh of loan repaymts // then we will make big step fwd.

HIRSHON IS APPOINTING A HIGH-PROFILE TASK FORCE TO DRAW UP SUCH A SYSTEM. HE SAYS IT’S CRUCIAL TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM. AFTER ALL, HIRSHON POINTS OUT, EQUAL PROTECTION UNDER THE LAW IS A CORNERSTONE OF OUR POLITICAL SYSTEM. WITHOUT GOOD LAWYERS AT ALL LEVELS OF SOCIETY, HE SAYS, THERE CAN BE NO DEMOCRACY. FOR NHPR