Introduction:
NCAJ carries out its own research, works with social scientists, helps to connect the social science community and the legal aid community, all in the service of developing and relying on data to increase access to justice.
Projects:
- Outcomes Project – This project is funded by the New York Community Trust to develop guidance for civil legal aid programs and civil legal aid funders in New York City on best practices for using data to evaluate outcomes achieved by civil legal aid programs for clients and communities. NCAJ is pursuing the project in 2017 and 2018, which includes conducting interviews with civil legal aid program leaders and with leaders in the philanthropic community. Attorneys at Morgan, Lewis and Bockius are providing pro bono support to the project. A panel of expert advisors to the project includes: a) Christine M. Fecko, General Counsel, IOLA Fund of the State of New York; b) Bob Gillett, Executive Director, Michigan Advocacy Program; c) Rachel Perry, Founder and Principal, Strategic Data Analytics; d) Rebecca L. Sandefur, Department of Sociology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Associate Professor, College of Law, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Senior Research Social Scientist, American Bar Foundation; and, e) Jessica Steinberg, Associate Professor of Clinical Law, George Washington School of Law. More information about the project is here.
- Engaged & Active Judges Research Project – This project was funded by the National Science Foundation to examine the fairness of proposed stipulations of settlement in NYC Housing Court. The research proposal is here, The Fairness of Proposed Stipulations of Settlement in NYC Housing Court (2015). The final report by co-authors Angela M. Jones, Larry Heuer, Steven Penrod & David Udell, Perceptions of Access to Justice Among Unrepresented Tenants: An Examination of Procedural Justice and Deservingness in New York City Housing Court in published in the Journal of Forensic Psychology, Research and Practice.
- Goal 16 National Access to Justice Indicators Project – NCAJ convened 30 experts from the nonprofit and academic communities with 30 government officials from 15 agencies in the White House – Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable for a “Civil Society Consultation on Goal 16 Access to Justice Indicators” on September 16, 2016 in Washington, D.C. NCAJ’s partner in coordinating the Consultation was Columbia Law School’s Human Rights Institute. See Department of Justice Blog, Courtesy of Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Bill Baer (September 16, 2016).
Resources:
- Data, Findings, Indicators, Indexing & The Justice Index, National Center for Access to Justice (2016) – A powerpoint introducing, referencing Goal 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals, introducing key concepts involved in using indexing to promote policy reform, and highlighting the Justice Index.
- David Udell, Research: The Promise. The Challenges. The Rewards, National Center for Access to Justice (2013) – A guide for the legal aid bar and for researchers on the contrasting perspectives each community brings to research evaluating diverse aspects of on civil legal aid.
- David Udell, Considering New Roles for Nonlawyers: An Overview, National Center for Access to Justice (May 2015)
- Richard Zorza, David Udell, New Roles for Nonlawyers to Increase Access to Justice, Fordham Urban Law Journal, Vol. XLI, pp. 1259-1315 (2014)
- David Udell, NY City Bar Association, Committee on Professional Responsibility, Issues Report Urging New Roles for Nonlawyers to Narrow the Justice Gap (June 20, 2013)
- David Udell, NY Court System Publishes 2012 Report of Task Force to Expand Access to Civil Legal Services in New York (December 3, 2012)
- Laura Abel, Economic Benefits of Civil Legal Aid, (September 5, 2012)
- David Udell, Washington State Adopts Rule Authorizing Limited Advocacy Role for Nonlawyers (June 19, 2012)
- David Udell, Turner v. Rogers, Decided and Blogged (July 29, 2011)