NEWS RELEASE
The National
Center for State Courts
300 Newport Avenue · Williamsburg, Virginia 23185
Contact:
Lorri Montgomery
Communications Manager
The National Center for State Courts
757.259.1525 or lmontgomery@ncsc.dni.us
Self
Help Support Web Site Now Offered
(http://www.selfhelpsupport.org)
Williamsburg, VA (Jan.
29, 2004) – The National Center for State Courts has launched an
online resource center for pro se practitioners called SelfHelpSupport.org. The site is the product of a powerful
collaboration between the court and legal aid communities.
Collaborating with the National Center, on this project -- funded
through the State Justice Institute (SJI) Grant No. 03-N-066—were the
American Judicature Society, the Legal Services Corporation, Zorza
Associates, Pro Bono Net, and SJI.
Courts and legal aid
programs around the country have been working locally to address the
challenges of litigants who represent themselves through the development
of innovative pro se and self help programs. Selfhelpsupport.org
is a way for these local programs to share their innovations and best
practices, and to insure that success stories are replicated quickly.
At the core of
Selfhelpsupport.org is an online library of resources collected from pro
se programs, courts, and legal service programs. More than 400 items,
links to articles and reports, and original documents are organized into
16 subject folders with headings such as Pro Se Assistance, Program
Development & Administration, Ethics & Changing Roles,
Evaluation, Funding, and Judicial Resources.
In addition to the
comprehensive online library, this website is designed to serve as a
virtual meeting place for professionals who provide assistance to
self-represented litigants, direct pro se programs in the courts or
legal aid programs, or are involved in any capacity with
self-representation. In using the site, members can share documents and
information, create Listservs, distribute mass mailings, and network
with other professionals in the field. The site offers an “Add A
Resource” feature, which allows members to upload documents onto the
Website to share with the online community.
“Our hope is that through SelfHelpSupport.org specific improvements and developments in providing pro se assistance will benefit many as we disseminate relevant information on self-help and legal aid programs to practitioners in the courts, community, and legal profession,” said Madelynn Herman, NCSC knowledge management analyst who helped develop the site and directs the project.
The State Justice
Institute, www.statejustice.org
is a non-profit organization established by federal law to award grants
to improve the quality of justice in state courts nationwide, facilitate
better coordination between state and federal courts, and foster
innovative, efficient solutions to common problems faced by all the
courts.
The National Center for State Courts, www.ncsconline.org is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the administration of justice by providing leadership and service to the state courts. The National Center, founded in 1971 with the encouragement of Chief Justice of the United State Warren E. Burger, carries out this mission through its offices in Williamsburg, Washington, D.C. and Denver, Colo., which provide research, education, and hands-on consulting services to the nation’s state courts.
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