Rep. Emily McAsey

Adopted in House on Apr 14, 2015

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3933

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3933 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Access to Justice Act is amended by
5changing Sections 5, 10, 15, and 20 and by adding Section 7 as
6follows:
 
7    (705 ILCS 95/5)
8    Sec. 5. Findings.
9    (a) The justice system in this State can only function
10fairly and effectively when there is meaningful access to legal
11information, resources, and assistance for all litigants,
12regardless of their income or circumstances.
13    (b) Increasing numbers of people throughout this State,
14including an increasing number of active duty service members
15and veterans, are coming into the courts without legal
16representation for cases involving important legal matters

 

 

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1impacting the basics of life such as health, safety, and
2shelter. In order for the courts to provide fair and efficient
3administration of justice in these cases, it is critical that
4people, and active duty service members and veterans in
5particular, have better access to varying levels of legal
6assistance appropriate for their individual circumstances,
7which will reduce the number of cases the courts must manage
8and reduce unnecessary backlogs and delays in the court system
9for the benefit of all litigants.
10    (c) An increasing number of active duty service members and
11veterans in this State have a need for legal information and
12assistance in a variety of matters that are often critical to
13their safety and independence, yet they are often unable to
14access that assistance. Providing access to legal advice and a
15referral system of attorneys for veterans and active duty
16service members, who often have underlying issues relating to
17their military service, increases the efficiency of the court
18system and advances access to justice for everyone in this
19State.
20(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
21    (705 ILCS 95/7 new)
22    Sec. 7. Definitions. As used in this Act:
23    (a) "Foundation" means the Illinois Equal Justice
24Foundation, a not-for-profit corporation created by the
25Illinois State Bar Association and the Chicago Bar Association

 

 

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1and recognized under the Illinois Equal Justice Act.
2    (b) "Illinois Access to Civil Justice Council" or "Council"
3means a special advisory body created by the Foundation. The
4Council consists of 7 members, appointed as follows: one by the
5Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois, one by the Chicago Bar
6Foundation, one by the Illinois Bar Foundation, one by the
7Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, one by the Illinois
8Attorney General, and 2 by the Foundation or any successor
9entities or agencies as designated by the Council.
 
10    (705 ILCS 95/10)
11    Sec. 10. Pilot programs.
12    (a) The Illinois Access to Civil Justice Council shall
13General Assembly encourages the Supreme Court to develop: (i) a
14pilot program to create a statewide military personnel and
15veterans' legal assistance hotline and coordinated network of
16legal support resources; and (ii) a pilot program to provide
17court-based legal assistance within a circuit court in each
18appellate district of this State.
19    (b) The General Assembly recommends that the rules
20developing the pilot programs:
21        (1) provide intake, screening, and varying levels of
22    legal assistance to ensure that the parties served by these
23    programs have meaningful access to justice;
24        (2) gather information on the outcomes associated with
25    providing the services described in paragraph (1) of this

 

 

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1    subsection; and
2        (3) guard against the involuntary waiver of rights or
3    disposition by default.
4(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
5    (705 ILCS 95/15)
6    Sec. 15. Access to Justice Fund.
7    (a) The Access to Justice Fund is created as a special fund
8in the State treasury. The Fund shall consist of fees collected
9under Section 27.3g of the Clerks of Courts Act. Moneys Subject
10to appropriation, moneys in the Access to Justice Fund shall be
11appropriated to used by the Attorney General for disbursement
12to the Foundation. The Foundation shall use the moneys to make
13grants and distributions Supreme Court for the administration
14of the pilot programs created under this Act. Grants or
15distributions made under this Act by the Foundation are subject
16to the requirements of the Illinois Grant Funds Recovery Act.
17    (b) In accordance with the requirements of the Illinois
18Equal Justice Act, the Foundation may make grants, enter into
19contracts, and take other actions recommended by the Council to
20effectuate the pilot programs and comply with the other
21requirements of this Act.
22    (c) The governing board of the Foundation must prepare and
23submit an annual report to the Governor, the President of the
24Senate, the Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the
25House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the House of

 

 

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1Representatives, and the Justices of the Illinois Supreme
2Court. The report must include: (i) a statement of the total
3receipts and a breakdown by source during each of the previous
42 calendar years; (ii) a list of the names and addresses of the
5recipients that are currently receiving grants or
6distributions and that received grants or distributions in the
7previous year and the amounts committed to recipients for the
8current year and paid in the previous year; (iii) a breakdown
9of the amounts of grants or distributions paid during the
10previous year to recipients and the amounts committed to each
11recipient for the current year; (iv) a breakdown of the
12Foundation's costs in administering the Fund; (v) a statement
13of the Fund balance at the start and at the close of the
14previous year and the interest earned during the previous year;
15and (vi) any notices the Foundation issued denying applications
16for grants or distributions under this Act. The report, in its
17entirety, is a public record, and the Foundation and the
18Governor shall make the report available for inspection upon
19request.
20    (d) The Foundation may annually retain a portion of the
21disbursement it receives under this Section to reimburse the
22Foundation for the actual cost of administering the Council and
23for making the grants and distributions pursuant to this Act
24during that year.
25    (e) No moneys distributed by the Foundation from the Access
26to Justice Fund may be directly or indirectly used for lobbying

 

 

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1activities, as defined in Section 2 of the Lobbyist
2Registration Act or as defined in any ordinance or resolution
3of a municipality, county, or other unit of local government in
4Illinois.
5    (f) The Foundation may make, enter into, and execute
6contracts, agreements, leases, and other instruments with any
7person, including without limitation any federal, State, or
8local governmental agency, and may take other actions that may
9be necessary or convenient to accomplish any purpose authorized
10by this Act.
11    (g) The Foundation has the authority to receive and accept
12any and all grants, loans, subsidies, matching funds,
13reimbursements, federal grant moneys, fees for services, and
14other things of value from the federal or State government or
15any agency of any other state or from any institution, person,
16firm, or corporation, public or private, to be used to carry
17out the purposes of this Act.
18(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
19    (705 ILCS 95/20)
20    Sec. 20. Evaluation. The Council Supreme Court shall study
21the effectiveness of the pilot programs implemented under this
22Act and submit a report to the Governor and General Assembly by
23June 1, 2021 2017. The report shall include the number of
24people served in each pilot program and data on the impact of
25varying levels of legal assistance on access to justice, the

 

 

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1effect on fair and efficient court administration, and the
2impact on government programs and community resources. This
3report shall describe the benefits of providing legal
4assistance to those who were previously unrepresented, both for
5the clients and the courts, and shall describe strategies and
6recommendations for maximizing the benefit of that
7representation in the future. The report shall include an
8assessment of the continuing unmet needs and, if available,
9data regarding those unmet needs.
10(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
11    Section 10. The Clerks of Courts Act is amended by changing
12Section 27.3g as follows:
 
13    (705 ILCS 105/27.3g)
14    (Section scheduled to be repealed on August 15, 2018)
15    Sec. 27.3g. Pilot program; Access to Justice Act.
16    (a) On and after September 1, 2015 If the Supreme Court
17develops a pilot program to provide court-based legal
18assistance in accordance with Section 10 of the Access to
19Justice Act, all clerks of the circuit court shall charge and
20collect at the time of filing the first pleading, paper, or
21other appearance filed by each party in all civil cases, in
22addition to any other fees, a fee of $10, but no additional fee
23shall be required if more than one party is represented in a
24single pleading, paper, or other appearance. Fees received by

 

 

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1the clerk of the circuit court under this Section shall be
2remitted by the clerk of the circuit court to the State
3Treasurer, within one month after receipt, to the Supreme Court
4for deposit into the Access to Justice Fund created under
5Section 15 of the Access to Justice Act.
6    (b) This Section is repealed on September 1, 2020 5 years
7after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th
8General Assembly.
9(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
10    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
11becoming law.".