In a pioneering move that ensures legal accessibility for tenants, the South Carolina Supreme Court concludes that a program run by the NAACP does not contravene legal practice restrictions. Set as an answer to the alarming eviction rate in the state, the NAACP's initiative aims to train non-lawyer volunteers to give limited legal advice and support to tenants in legal quandaries.
A Provisional Green Light
The court stamped its approval on the program last week, promoting a provisional period of three years. The program was designed to ensure that adequately scrutinized volunteers wouldn't engage in unauthorized law practices. According to Brenda Murphy, the president of the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, this ruling was very much needed. She stated, "Our state has too few lawyers, and too many tenants are being evicted." She proclaimed this an opportunity to double down on efforts to ensure tenants have the advice required to respond to their evictions.
Legal Challenges and Victories
Previously, the South Carolina NAACP had punched above their weight, taking the state's attorney general to court with a federal lawsuit. In March 2023, the suit was lodged to prevent the state from applying unauthorized practice of law rules to the NAACP's planned initiatives. The NAACP contended that imposing such restrictions would infringe on rights safeguarded by the First Amendment. Following the state Supreme Court's ruling, the NAACP dismissed its federal case. However, a South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson's office representative hasn't yet commented.
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A Program to Aid the Vulnerable
The NAACP program takes a stand to assist low-income South Carolinian citizens confronted with the threat of eviction. The plan is to train and certify "advocates" to provide free, yet limited, vetted legal advice from housing attorneys.
Late last week, the high court decided to grant approval on a trial basis. Once the NAACP branch submitted the paperwork, it became clear that the training provided was sufficient, complete with safeguards and lawyer supervision. As such, the advocates certified under the Housing Program, all strictly adhering to the regulations outlined in the training manual, will not partake in the unauthorized practice of law.
A Wider Perspective
The issue of allowing volunteers devoid of law degrees to give needed legal help has caught the attention of various other courts. In 2022, the New York-based nonprofit Upsolve secured a preliminary injunction stopping the New York attorney general from applying state unauthorized law practice rules to its own program, which was set up to provide free legal advice on debt-collection lawsuits.
Recently, a North Carolina nonprofit filed a comparable First Amendment case against the state attorney general to enable paralegals to render legal advice on filling out court-created forms. The journey to provide accessible legal help stretches beyond South Carolina, fostering a broader impact.
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