University of Virginia Library

State Bar Terminates Office
Of Madison Hall Legal Aid

By TOM SAUNDERS

The Madison Hall Student Legal Aid
and Lawyer Referral Service has been
terminated after being advised by the
Virginia State Bar that its programs are
illegal.

According to the State Bar's
Committee on Unauthorized Practice of
Law, any law student who persists in the
service's practice of advising students and
area residents on minor legal matters
could be charged with violating State Bar
regulations.

Organized in 1969, the Student Legal
Aid and Lawyer Referral service went
relatively unnoticed until the fall of 1970
when it published "Landlord-Tenant Law."

Until October, 1971, the service
counseled an average of 15 students per
week on problems with leases, rents and
other minor matters.

In August of 1971, however, the service
was notified by members of the local Bar
that its activities would certainly be
considered illegal under State Bar
regulations.

In October, Diane Strickland, Madison
Hall's Director of Professional Services,
the division under which the Legal Aid
service operates, sent a list of the
programs the service wished to sponsor to
the State Bar's Executive Director
Samuel Clifton.

Mr. Clifton then referred the matter
to the Committee on Unauthorized
Practice of Law. The service then
temporarily suspended its activities
pending the committee's findings.

At the end of January the committee
advised the service that those programs it
had submitted for review were illegal
unless performed by licensed attorneys.
The temporary suspension then became
permanent.

According to Miss Strickland, the
proposal that the committee found illegal
was in three parts. "First," she said, "we
wanted to help students with minor legal
problems that didn't justify the time or
attention of a licensed attorney."

"Second," she continued, "In more
complicated legal matters, we wanted to
be able to refer students to local lawyers
who have shown an interest in their
particular kind of problem, and third, we
wanted to publish more booklets like
"Landlord-Tenant Law" that could be of
value to the community."

When asked if the type of legal service
previously provided by Madison Hall
would be available to students in the
future, Miss Strickland commented,
"Only if the University hires an attorney
to work entirely with the students will
free legal aid be available."