About the California JusticeCorps Program

What Is JusticeCorps?
The JusticeCorps program presents an innovative approach to solving one of the more pressing issues faced by courts around the country today: providing equal access to justice. JusticeCorps recruits and trains 250 diverse university students annually to augment overburdened court and legal aid staff who are assisting self-represented litigants in court-based self-help programs in select locations throughout California. These highly motivated and well-trained students provide in-depth and individualized services to self-represented litigants, often in their own languages. Parties are given clear information and options, and then connected quickly to the right resources. Litigants are assisted in completing appropriate and accurate pleadings, written orders, and judgments under attorney supervision and, in the process, provided with a better understanding of the court system.

Funded through an AmeriCorps grant, JusticeCorps is a collaborative project of the California Administrative Office of the Courts; the Superior Courts of California, Counties of Alameda, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara; select University of California and California State University campuses; and many community-based service providers.

JusticeCorps was first launched as a pilot program in Los Angeles County in 2004. One hundred volunteers were trained and placed in 10 legal self-help centers and at the county small claims advisor's office. JusticeCorps members commit to serving 300 hours in the self-help centers and receive approximately 30 hours of training as well as a $1,000 education award when they complete the program. Visit the news section to see a summary of the program's second year accomplishments. Based on the success of the Los Angeles pilot, the JusticeCorps Program expanded to the San Francisco Bay Area in fall 2006 and to San Diego in fall 2007.