Rep. Emily McAsey

Filed: 4/20/2015

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3933

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

 

 

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

 

 

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

 

 

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1    legal assistance to ensure that the parties served by these
2    programs have meaningful access to justice;
3        (2) gather information on the outcomes associated with
4    providing the services described in paragraph (1) of this
5    subsection; and
6        (3) guard against the involuntary waiver of rights or
7    disposition by default.
8(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
9    (705 ILCS 95/15)
10    Sec. 15. Access to Justice Fund.
11    (a) The Access to Justice Fund is created as a special fund
12in the State treasury. The Fund shall consist of fees collected
13under Section 27.3g of the Clerks of Courts Act. Moneys Subject
14to appropriation, moneys in the Access to Justice Fund shall be
15directed to and used by the Attorney General for grants to the
16Foundation Supreme Court for the administration of the pilot
17programs created under this Act. Grants made under this Act to
18the Foundation are subject to the requirements of the Illinois
19Grant Funds Recovery Act.
20    (b) In accordance with the requirements of the Illinois
21Equal Justice Act, the Foundation may make grants, enter into
22contracts, and take other actions recommended by the Council to
23effectuate the pilot programs and comply with the other
24requirements of this Act.
25    (c) The governing board of the Foundation must prepare and

 

 

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1submit an annual report to the Governor, the President of the
2Senate, the Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the
3House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the House of
4Representatives, and the Justices of the Illinois Supreme
5Court. The report must include: (i) a statement of the total
6receipts and a breakdown by source during each of the previous
72 calendar years; (ii) a list of the names and addresses of the
8recipients that are currently receiving funds and that received
9funds in the previous year and the amounts committed to
10recipients for the current year and paid in the previous year;
11(iii) a breakdown of the amounts paid during the previous year
12to recipients and the amounts committed to each recipient for
13the current year; (iv) a breakdown of the Foundation's costs in
14administering the Fund; (v) a statement of the Fund balance at
15the start and at the close of the previous year and the
16interest earned during the previous year; and (vi) any notices
17the Foundation issued denying applications for moneys under
18this Act. The report, in its entirety, is a public record, and
19the Foundation and the Governor shall make the report available
20for inspection upon request.
21    (d) The Foundation may annually retain a portion of the
22amounts it receives under this Section to reimburse the
23Foundation for the actual cost of administering the Council and
24for making the grants and distributions pursuant to this Act
25during that year.
26    (e) No moneys distributed from the Access to Justice Fund

 

 

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1may be directly or indirectly used for lobbying activities, as
2defined in Section 2 of the Lobbyist Registration Act or as
3defined in any ordinance or resolution of a municipality,
4county, or other unit of local government in Illinois.
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 Supreme Court, Governor, and
23General Assembly by June 1, 2021 2017. The report shall include
24the number of people served by the veteran and active military
25legal hotline and pro bono program and data on how the pilot

 

 

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1programs expanded access to justice and the impact on
2government programs and community resources in each pilot
3program and data on the impact of varying levels of legal
4assistance on access to justice, the effect on fair and
5efficient court administration, and the impact on government
6programs and community resources. This report shall describe
7the benefits of providing legal assistance to those who were
8previously unrepresented, both for the clients, the military
9and veteran service organizations, and civil legal aid
10programs, and the courts, and shall describe strategies and
11recommendations for maximizing the benefit of that
12representation in the future. The report shall include an
13assessment of the continuing unmet needs and, if available,
14data regarding those unmet needs.
15(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
16    Section 10. The Clerks of Courts Act is amended by changing
17Section 27.3g as follows:
 
18    (705 ILCS 105/27.3g)
19    (Section scheduled to be repealed on August 15, 2018)
20    Sec. 27.3g. Pilot program; Access to Justice Act.
21    (a) On and after September 1, 2015 If the Supreme Court
22develops a pilot program to provide court-based legal
23assistance in accordance with Section 10 of the Access to
24Justice Act, all clerks of the circuit court shall charge and

 

 

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1collect at the time of filing the first pleading, paper, or
2other appearance filed by each party in all civil cases, in
3addition to any other fees, a fee of $2 $10, but no additional
4fee shall be required if more than one party is represented in
5a single pleading, paper, or other appearance. Fees received by
6the clerk of the circuit court under this Section shall be
7remitted by the clerk of the circuit court to the Attorney
8General, within one month after receipt, to the Supreme Court
9for deposit into the Access to Justice Fund created under
10Section 15 of the Access to Justice Act.
11    (b) This Section is repealed on September 1, 2020 5 years
12after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th
13General Assembly.
14(Source: P.A. 98-351, eff. 8-15-13.)
 
15    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
16becoming law.".