Tuesday, Jul 26 2011 8:33AM
Hawaii's AJC approved a measure to increase lawsuit filing fees - a move which aims to help provide more affordable legal assistance for low-income residents.
According to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, the state Access to Justice Commission, which was created by the Hawaii Supreme Court in 2007, has approved a measure to raise lawsuit filing fees and use them to help pay for legal assistance for low-income residents.
A recent study shows four in five low-income Hawaiian residents don't get the legal aid they need. Passing this measure should allow low-income residents better access to the court system.
"The Judiciary's responsibility is to provide access to justice to the citizens of the community," attorney Gary Slovin, part of the AJC's legislative panel committee, told the paper. "But the fact of the matter is many citizens do not have true access because they cannot afford the legal help, and that seems very unfair."
The Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, one group that would receive the funds, told the Star-Advertiser nonprofit organizations and other service groups previously received roughly $305,000 per year. However, the new measure is projected to boost that figure to nearly $1.5 million.
With the change, Hawaii became the 28th state to approve of a lawsuit fee-hike measure, the newspaper reports.