Statewide legal hotline helps thousands

Dear Editor: Two years after launching LSNJ LAW, its statewide legal advice hotline, Legal Services of New Jersey (LSNJ) is reporting on the hotline’s significant impact while announcing new strategies for promoting its use. A free service for eligible low-income New Jersey residents who cannot afford to hire an attorney for their civil legal problems, the hotline is reached by calling the toll-free number, 1-888-LSNJ LAW (1-888-576-5529). Calls are answered by specially trained hotline paralegals who screen callers for financial eligibility and case subject matter. Callers are then scheduled for a callback by a hotline attorney or referred to other service providers. The hotline provides information and advice only; it does not offer ongoing legal representation. LSNJ LAW is now handling between 600 and 700 calls per month. Of these, more than two-thirds are scheduled for callbacks by hotline attorneys, amounting to more than 5,000 cases per year. The other one-third of hotline callers are screened out (for example, because of financial ineligibility) or referred elsewhere for help. Legal Services of NJ Edison, N.J.

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