Civil Legal Needs Study

Civil Legal Needs Statistics    

2003 Civil Legal Needs Study

  • Found that 3 out of 4 low-income households experienced at least one legal problem and that nearly 9 out of 10 who had a problem did not get the help they needed.  

2015 Civil Legal Needs Study

  • 7 out of 10 low-income households in Washington face at least one significant legal issue each year and more than 75% of those who have a legal problem do not get the help that need.  

  • The average number of legal issues that a household faces increased dramatically from 3.3 in 2003 to 9.3 in 2015.  

  • Low-income people have limited confidence in the state’s civil justice system and do not perceive it to be a fair system. 

Civil Legal Needs Studies                                         

The Office of Civil Legal Aid (OCLA) is tasked with periodically assessing and reporting on the most prevalent civil legal problems experienced by low-income people in Washington State and the capacity of the state-funded legal aid system to meet the legal needs arising from such problems. Information learned during the studies helps inform future civil legal aid services and funding in the state. 

In July 2024, the Washington State Supreme Court and OCLA kicked off the process for a new civil legal needs study. An updated study will allow policymakers and civil legal aid providers to respond effectively to the changes of the past decade (including those caused by the COVID-19 pandemic), understand and assess the justice gap in Washington, assess the effectiveness and cost of possible solutions, and identify barriers to accessing legal assistance. 

2015 Civil Legal Needs Study Update Related Materials: 

In 2015, the Washington Supreme Court initiated a State Civil Legal Needs Study Update. This 2015 update is the most recent completed assessment of civil legal aid in Washington State.                 

2003 Civil Legal Needs Study 

The first Civil Legal Needs Study of low-income residents of Washington was conducted in 2003. That report was the first of its kind in Washington and was conducted by the Washington Supreme Court’s Task Force on Civil Equal Justice Funding. The report chronicled the frequency and substance of the civil legal problems experienced by low and moderate income people, commonalities and differences between the problems experienced by members of different demographic groups and subgroups, differences between problems experienced by low and moderate income households, the degree to which legal assistance was available to those experiencing civil legal problems, and the impact that civil legal assistance (and the lack thereof) had on an individual’s ability to effectively resolve their legal problem(s) and on their respect for the civil justice system as a whole.