Military Pro Bono Project provides free legal assistance for members, spouses

  • Published
  • 23rd Wing Legal Office
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Individuals who have pending legal issues and are concerned with the affordability of an attorney are able to turn to Moody's Legal Office. 

The American Bar Association's Military Pro Bono Project (MPBP) will help military members secure free legal assistance from civilian attorneys in a variety of civil legal matters. 

The project is a unique referral service for military members to assist with finding legal services they need. Members must meet with a military attorney to determine if they meet the specific project requirements. 

Active duty, Guard and Reserve members who are eligible post-deployment legal assistance are eligible for a referral. Spouses may get representation through the project if the legal issues affect the well-being of the family as a whole and if the interests of the spouse and military member are the same. 

The client must be financially eligible (pay grades E-6 and below are presumed eligible, above E-6 must show significant financial hardship). The issue cannot be one that is be practical for a military legal assistance attorney to handle and the military attorney must determine that a case has a legal basis for recovery. 

The types of cases the MPBP accepts are listed below: 

· Consumer law is representation that includes predatory lending (including payday lending). The Truth In Lending Act, Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, lemon laws and lender violations of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act are examples. Occasionally, sympathetic Chapter 7 bankruptcy cases will qualify.
· Landlord/Tenant is representation limited to only tenants in all types of landlord/tenant disputes.
· Guardianship is generally only provided to the current spouses or parents to help secure guardianship of incompetent servicemembers.
· Family law covers any disputed proceeding significantly affecting an important interest of the servicemember.
· Probate is representation that extends to servicemember's next-of-kin who are experiencing hardships in securing military benefits or struggling with significant probate issues.
· Trusts and Estates representation is limited to creation of special needs trusts or more complex estate planning issues.
· Employment representation generally involves any Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act issues. 

To make an appointment with an attorney, call (229) 257-3414 or DSN 460-3414. 

Remember, the process is not speedy, so do not wait until the last minute. 

(The previous information was collected from the ABA Military Pro Bono Project.)