Do-It-Yourself (Pro Se) Litigation — Will It Really Save You Money?

• Tweet

• Tweet

Legal representation can be expensive, and with this sluggish economic recovery, more and more people are finding themselves in need of legal help, while fewer and fewer can afford costly attorney fees. Larry Tribe, who heads the U.S. Justice Department’s Access to Justice Initiative, recently told the Wall Street Journal that this is especially a problem for the middle class who don’t qualify for free representation but can’t afford lawyer fees. The majority of pro se cases the courts see include bankruptcy, foreclosure, landlord/tenant issues, and domestic-relations matters such as divorce, custody and child support, small claims, probate, and protective orders.

The ABA Coalition of Justice conducted a survey of judges in late 2009 to gauge the effects of the economic downturn on legal representation in courts. Of the nearly 1000 judges who responded, 60 percent said fewer parties had lawyers in 2009 than in previous years.

But while some individuals may be saving loads of time and money by flying solo in the courtroom, legal experts say that pro se litigants are often at a serious disadvantage. According to the survey, 62 percent of the judges reported that the outcomes of cases fought by self-representing litigants prove less successful than those fought with the help of an attorney.

The reason these people are losing their cases? It’s because they have insufficient—if any—legal training. And they’re not given any slack either—pro se litigants are still held under the same legal standards as attorneys. The majority of judges in the survey said that pro se litigants suffer from procedural errors, ineffective arguments, ineffective witness examination, and a failure to prepare judgements and orders.

90 percent of judges also report an increasing disruption of the efficiency of court proceedings when parties are not represented by attorneys. Unprepared litigants are “clogging up the system,” said Anoka County Judge Michael Roth.

These results echo warnings from the Brennan Center for Justice that reports that both national judicial systems and legal aid organizations are increasingly overburdened. State-administered Interest on Lawyer Trust Account (IOLTA) programs—one of the largest sources of revenue for civil legal aid programs—are losing funding because of plummeting revenue caused by a significant decline in interest rates.

“We can only help one out of every nine people who solicit our help,” said Steven Banks, head of The Legal Aid Society in New York City—an organization that lost nearly $1.8 million in funding last year due to budget cuts.

There is good news out there for people looking to represent themselves in court, though. Despite funding problems, the legal community is doing its best to respond to the population’s increasing need for legal help. Many states have non-profits that offer pro se seminars, satellite self-help centers, and pro bono resources to help people find and understand court forms, procedures, and other legal requirements.

People are also opting for “preventative” legal care, by researching potential issues at law libraries, creating do-it-yourself documents, and getting them reviewed and approved by a lawyer. Online forums and legal communities are also good resources for sharing experiences and tips on pro se litigation.

The news for pro se litigants may sound dismal, but individuals should take heart in the fact that while they can’t control the economy, they can control how prepared they are in court.  You can create legal documents yourself for preventative matters, but if you’re going to court, it’s best to Find a Lawyer to help you.  Remember that making a mistake in court can cost you a lot more than the price of a lawyer’s fees.