News Releases

State Bar Announces Record Legal Services Funding of $78 Million to 100 Grantees

The State Bar’s Legal Services Trust Fund Commission today announced its 2020 legal services grantees and distribution allocations of more than $78 million—a new record total—to 100 nonprofits statewide who provide free civil legal aid in California to indigent persons.

“Even in a time of economic prosperity, we know that many Californians simply cannot afford legal services,” said Leah T. Wilson, State Bar Executive Director. “The State Bar is working to fulfill its mission of furthering access to legal services along multiple fronts. This record allocation is the most tangible of those efforts: through our legal services partners, the funding will support access for hundreds of thousands of Californians in need.”

Grants were tentatively renewed for 97 legal services projects statewide and the commission approved three new grantees:

• Housing Equality & Advocacy Resource Team (HEART L.A.), a Los Angeles public interest law firm that provides legal representation and advocacy to keep people and their companion animals housed.
   
• Dependency Advocacy Center (DAC), which provide interdisciplinary family defense legal services to indigent parents and children involved in Santa Clara County’s child welfare system. DAC’s goal is to promote timely reunification and preservation of these families in a safe, healthy environment.
   
• Eviction Defense Collaborative (EDC), which combines rental assistance; legal assistance in an eviction; and advocacy for shelter clients in San Francisco. San Franciscans voted to become one of the first cities nationwide to guarantee legal representation to any tenant facing eviction. EDC is the lead partner for San Francisco’s Tenant Right to Counsel initiative.

The grantees list is tentative until final paperwork is submitted and approved by the Legal Services Trust Fund Commission at its meeting in November.

The State Bar distributes funds from two main sources--the Interest on Lawyer’s Trust Accounts (IOLTA) and the Equal Access Fund (EAF). Although IOLTA and EAF grants are separate funding sources, there is one combined application for both.

Since 1984, approximately 58 percent of State Bar legal aid grant funds have come from IOLTA. For 2020, the Board of Trustees approved distribution of $55.6 million in IOLTA funds, a total that represents a new record and a 400 percent increase over the grant distribution just two years ago. This dramatic leap in IOLTA revenue is largely the result of two factors: an improving economy that has driven rising interest rates, and the State Bar’s efforts to work with banks to maximize interest revenue.

In 2018, the State Bar began recertifying the nearly 200 eligible financial institutions that offer IOLTA accounts. Staff reviewed financial products to ensure that IOLTA interest rates comply with the requirements. That effort continued this year. A single negotiation with one bank—the largest holder of IOLTA accounts in California—yielded an interest rate increase of more than 50 basis points, increasing the potential amount of interest by nearly $5 million annually.

The Equal Access Fund is allocated by the Legislature. The 2020 EAF distribution totals $23.5 million. Governor Newsom added $20 million to next year’s EAF for legal services related to landlord-tenant disputes and homelessness prevention. The first $15 million of this new funding will be distributed pursuant to a formula; the remaining $5 million will be allocated through a competitive grant process for eligible IOLTA organizations. The request for proposals for that portion will be released this week, with proposals due by October 18, 2019. The commission will make final grant decisions for this new funding in November.

More information

Fact sheet: Advancing Access to Legal Services

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The State Bar of California's mission is to protect the public and includes the primary functions of licensing, regulation and discipline of attorneys; the advancement of the ethical and competent practice of law; and support of efforts for greater access to, and inclusion in, the legal system.