Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable Issues 2023 Report on Access to Justice

Report outlines strategies for simplification of administrative proceedings and increased representation in these proceedings.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and White House Counsel Ed Siskel co-chaired a convening of the Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable (LAIR) where they announced the issuance of the 2023 LAIR Report, entitled Access to Justice in Federal Administrative Proceedings: Nonlawyer Assistance and Other Strategies.
The report highlights agency accomplishments and commitments in furtherance of LAIR’s mission to “increase the availability of meaningful access to justice for individuals and families, regardless of wealth or status.”
The report identifies two overarching strategies: Continue to develop and implement simplification strategies in administrative proceedings, and Increase representation and assistance by lawyers and nonlawyers for people in administrative proceedings.
The report provides examples of LAIR agency activities supporting nonlawyer assistance and offers ways that agencies can make assistance available to more people by addressing accreditation, providing clear guidance on the allowability of nonlawyers, conducting targeted outreach, providing training resources, and funding nonlawyer programs alongside legal service programs.
LAIR is co-chaired by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and White House Counsel Ed Siskel. It convenes 28 federal agencies and offices to improve coordination among federal programs and increase availability of meaningful access to justice for individuals and families, regardless of wealth and status.