The licensing system affects access to justice in several ways. Licensing practices that unduly restrict the number of licensed lawyers make it harder for clients to find lawyers. Restricting the number of lawyers also tends to drive up prices, making legal services less accessible to low- and middle-income clients. And when a licensing system disproportionately excludes first-generation candidates, candidates of color, and those with limited economic resources, it turns away candidates who come from the most underserved communities. Those candidates have no obligation to serve their communities, but they may be particularly effective lawyers when they choose to do so.
Research repeatedly demonstrates that the United States faces an access-to-justice crisis. A 2022 report from the Legal Services Corporation documents that low-income individuals lack legal assistance for 92% of the substantial legal problems they experience. These legal problems include matters related to health care, safety, housing, income maintenance, and education. Individuals who lack access to legal assistance may lose their homes, jobs, health care, and other necessities--even when the law is on their side.
The crisis is just as acute in the criminal justice system. Despite the constitutionally guaranteed right to counsel, both states and the federal government struggle to provide sufficient representation to indigent defendants. Defendants wait in jail for a public defender to be appointed, despite the fact that they are presumed innocent. Victims wait for their cases to come to trial. Defendants may accept hasty plea bargains rather than assert their rights. And both state and federal courts are overwhelmed with a backlog of criminal cases.
These problems require widespread systemic solutions--but reforming the way we license lawyers can help. One approach, the Lawyers' Justice Corps, offers particular promise for improving access to justice while also enhancing the quality of licensed lawyers. Read more about that solution on our Lawyers' Justice Corps page.