SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — The Illinois Supreme Court has approved a new initiative aimed at closing the gap in access to civil legal services across the state.
The Community Justice Worker Program will allow trained, certified non-lawyers to offer limited legal assistance under the supervision of a licensed attorney, helping address the shortage of affordable legal help in underserved areas.
The program was proposed by the Supreme Court Executive Committee on the Practice of Law. That committee was created in 2023 to study unmet legal needs across Illinois.
In September, the Illinois Supreme Court announced its approval in concept of the new Community Justice Worker Program.
The goal of the program is to place community justice workers within nonprofit and legal aid organizations to assist residents with issues such as housing, family law, debt relief and wills.
Tim Eaton, chair of the Supreme Court’s Executive Committee on the Practice of Law and a partner with Taft Law, shared that Texas, Indiana and Utah have similar programs.
"The mission behind it is to help people who have unmet legal needs, and currently, there are a number of people who fit in that category," Eaton said.
Recent data from the National Center of State Courts shows some counties in Illinois have less than 20 active attorneys.
Clarissa Gaff, Executive Director of Land of Lincoln Legal Aid, told WAND her agency serves 750,000 low-income Illinoisans, but it can only help 12,000-14,000 a year.
"There are about 80,000 to 90,000 attorneys registered in the state of Illinois, and most of them are in Chicago," Gaff said.
Gaff said the program could be transformative for communities that face shortages of attorneys.
“There are counties here in Illinois where you only have one or two attorneys,” Gaff explained. “Even if you can afford one, it can be really hard to access them. This program will train trusted community residents—like school counselors, nurses, or staff at the health department—to give people information and advice on specific legal issues, supervised by an attorney.”
The community justice workers will not replace attorneys, but rather expand the network of legal assistance available in high-need areas.
“These folks are not going to be replacing lawyers,” Eaton said. “They will be certified in certain areas of law, such as family law, debt relief, or housing, and they will be able to give advice. There’ll be restrictions on what advice they can give, but anything is better than what we have now.”
The court has given the committee one year to design certification, training and supervision standards for the program.
“It’s going to be hundreds of hours of work, but well worth the effort," Eaton said. "If more people can be helped, then the courts become less congested, and people will go in informed about their rights.”
The Executive Committee will work with the Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice and the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission to develop the details before submitting a final recommendation to the court in October 2026.
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