The Justice Gap

What is the Justice Gap

The justice gap refers to the disparity between the civil legal needs of low-income Americans and the resources available to meet those needs. While criminal defendants have a right to a public defender, no such guarantee exists for civil legal issues like evictions, family law disputes, or debt collection cases. As a result, many individuals face these challenges without legal assistance.

What the Research Shows

Every two years, the Legal Services Corporation (LSC)—the largest funder of civil legal aid in the United States—conducts a comprehensive study of this justice gap. Their Justice Gap Report documents how many low-income Americans need legal help, what kinds of problems they face, and how often they’re able to get assistance. The findings reveal the true scale of unmet legal needs across the country.

Key Facts from LSC’s Justice Gap Report:

Limited Capacity
Due to funding constraints, LSC-funded legal aid organizations must turn away nearly half (49%) of those seeking assistance.¹

High Unmet Legal Needs
92% of the civil legal problems of low-income Americans received inadequate or no legal help.¹

Prevalence of Legal Issues
Nearly three-quarters (74%) of low-income households experienced at least one civil legal problem in the previous year.¹

Common Legal Problems
The most frequent issues involve consumer problems, health care, housing, and income maintenance.²

Resource Constraints in Arkansas
In Arkansas, there is only one legal aid attorney for every 17,222 low-income residents, compared to one private attorney for every 250 residents.³

Our Commitment

AATJ is dedicated to closing this gap by:

  • Expanding Legal Aid Funding
    Securing resources to serve more individuals.
  • Increasing Pro Bono Participation
    Encouraging attorneys to volunteer their services.
  • Enhancing Self-Help Resources
    Providing tools like courthouse kiosks and online legal guides.
  • Advocating for Policy Reforms
    Pushing for changes that improve access to justice.

Join us in the fight for equal justice.

Support access to justice in Arkansas

Impact on Arkansas

Housing Stability

Without legal representation, low-income tenants facing eviction proceedings are significantly more likely to lose their homes.⁴

  • 84-96% success rate when tenants have legal representation in eviction cases, compared to much lower rates for unrepresented tenants
  • Tenants with attorneys are 10.7 times more likely to remain in their homes than those without representation
  • Legal representation helps tenants secure additional time to find alternative housing, avoid negative marks on their rental history, and maintain housing stability for themselves and their families

Benefits for People with Disabilities

People with disabilities and veterans who are denied critical benefits often cannot navigate complex appeals processes without legal assistance.

Social Security Disability:

  • Applicants with legal representation are awarded benefits nearly 3 times as often as those without representation ⁶
  • Approximately 66% approval rate for responders with attorney representation vs. 41% for responders without representation at Administrative Law Judge hearings ⁷

Veterans’ Benefits:⁸ 

  • 46.3% approval rate for VA disability appeals with attorney representation
  • Only 26.18% approval rate for veterans without representation
  • Attorney representation nearly doubles veterans’ chances of winning their appeals

Domestic Violence Protection

Survivors of domestic violence seeking protective orders face significant barriers when navigating the legal system without assistance.⁵

  • 83% success rate for obtaining protective orders when survivors have legal representation
  • Only 32% success rate for unrepresented survivors seeking protective orders
  • Legal representation more than doubles the likelihood that domestic violence survivors will obtain the protection they need from their abusers

Children’s Health

Children from low-income families may face legal barriers such as housing instability, lack of access to public benefits, or unsafe living conditions that negatively impact their health and development.⁹ Legal Aid of Arkansas partners with Arkansas Children’s Hospital and other healthcare providers through Medical-Legal Partnerships to address these health-harming legal needs.

  • Research on medical-legal partnerships shows children referred to these programs had 37.9% lower hospitalization rates compared to children who did not receive legal intervention
  • Studies show positive effects on children’s physical health, cognitive development, mental health, and healthcare use
  • Families receiving legal assistance through medical-legal partnerships reported improved access to food and public benefits, fewer social and legal needs, and reduced parental stress and depression
Citations

¹ Legal Services Corporation. (2022). The Justice Gap: The Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Low-income Americans. Prepared by NORC at the University of Chicago for Legal Services Corporation. Washington, DC.

² Legal Services Corporation. (2022). Executive Summary: The Justice Gap: The Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Low-income Americans. Washington, DC.

³ Attorney ratio calculated using: (1) Arkansas population at or below 125% of the Federal Poverty Level (775,000, representing 25% of the state’s population) from Legal Services Corporation. (2017). The Justice Gap: Measuring the Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Low-income Americans. Washington, DC.; (2) Arkansas legal aid attorney staffing levels (45 attorneys statewide as of January 2026) from Arkansas Business. (December 2025). Article on Legal Aid of Arkansas expansion following Center for Arkansas Legal Services sunset; and (3) Private attorney ratio (40 attorneys per 10,000 general population) from National Center for Access to Justice. (2021). Justice Index: Attorney Access.

⁴ Legal Services Corporation. (2023). Leveling the Playing Field: The Critical Role of Legal Representation in Housing Court. Washington, DC: Legal Services Corporation.

⁵ Rosenberg, D., & Grab, E. (2015). Supporting Survivors: The Economic Benefits of Providing Civil Legal Assistance to Survivors of Domestic Violence, p. 7. New York, NY: Institute for Policy Integrity, New York University School of Law. 

⁶ U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2017). Social Security Disability: Additional Measures and Evaluation Could Help Monitor Accuracy and Consistency of Disability Decisions, GAO-18-37, p. 29. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Accountability Office.

⁷ U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2003). Social Security Disability: SSA Disability Decision-Making: Additional Steps Needed to Ensure Accuracy and Fairness of Decisions at the Hearings Level, GAO-04-14, Table 10, p. 58. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Accountability Office.

⁸  U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Board of Veterans’ Appeals. (2019). Annual Report: Fiscal Year 2019, p. 32. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

⁹  Beck, A.F., et al. (2022). “Reductions in Hospitalizations Among Children Referred to a Primary Care-Based Medical-Legal Partnership.” Health Affairs, 41(3), 341-349.