Statewide Websites

Legal Services Corporation -  020048

Abstract Number: 020048

July 2003

In 2000, through the Technology Initiative Grant Program (TIG), LSC began funding the creation of statewide websites to provide legal information to advocates and the low-income client population they serve. Statewide websites provide clients access to legal services and pro bono referral information as well as public legal education information and self-help materials. Statewide websites enable legal services programs to streamline their services, attract and retain volunteer lawyers, greatly enhance training and support for volunteers, and share important legal resources across geographic and jurisdictional boundaries while maintaining program control of their own materials..

There are two primary statewide website platforms: the most popular platform was developed using Cold Fusion by a non-profit organization called Probono.net. Probono.net is also the url for the attorney/advocate side of the platform and Lawhelp.org is the name of the side of the website targeted to our clients. A second platform was developed in an Open Source language called Zope by a company called Kaivo. Probono.net hosts their template and provides continuous maintenance and support of the site. Programs using the Probono.net platform can focus their energy and resources on the development of content - they do not need in-house technical expertise to operate the site.

The Kaivo template allows greater flexibility in that each program can customize the entire site to their own programmatic needs. However, this requires greater technical expertise or additional funding to purchase those programming resources.

Recognizing the legal services delivery system meets only a fraction of the legal needs of low-income people, statewide websites exemplify one way that LSC is expanding service delivery by funding websites that provide high-quality, internet-based assistance that benefits legal aid attorneys and serves LSC's client population.

The statewide websites are also an outreach opportunity for LSC funded programs. Each statewide website is encouraged to include information from sister organizations serving low-income populations. Given the open nature of the Internet, partner organizations can simply logon to the statewide website and publish organizational information directly to the website. This means the statewide website serves as a single source of information of all kinds for low-income people. It is LSC's hope that by centralizing and compiling information in a single location, it will be easier for our clients to get help.

To access a specific Statewide Website, choose the state from the drop-down menu below:

Contact Information:

Joyce Raby
Program Analyst III
Legal Services Corporation
3333 K Street, NW, 2nd Floor
Washington, D.C. 20007
Phone: (202) 295-1554
Fax: (202) 336-6813
rabyj@lsc.gov

back to top ^