Civil Gideon And Access To Justice

As the United States celebrates the 50th anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Gideon vs. Wainwright, recognizing a constitutional right to counsel to those charged with crimes who cannot afford representation, this is also an opportune time to highlight a growing movement to provide similar legal assistance in adverse civil proceedings where basic human needs are at stake. It is a time to highlight the hard work and emerging success of the effort led by the Philadelphia Bar Association's Civil Gideon and Access to Justice Task Force, launched five years ago by then-Chancellor Sayde J. Ladov, and culminating in a breakthrough year in 2013, under the leadership of Chancellor Kathleen D. Wilkinson, in which this blue-ribbon panel has led the way to new projects such as the landlord-tenant Legal Help Center in Municipal Court, exploration of new representation initiatives in the Family Court division, and the award of an ABA grant with the support of