Your donations and support are vital to the delivery of LSSM legal services.
Be Involved with LSSM! There are a number of ways that you can join us in fulfilling the American promise of equal access to justice for southern Missouri.
Support for LSSM is diverse, from volunteer private attorneys to organization partners and financial donors. Your support is vital to the delivery of legal services to our low-income clients. Without your support, many client needs will go unmet, potentially resulting in denials of justice that could have tragic repercussions for families in our community. Being involved helps LSSM save homes, assist the elderly and disabled, prevent homelessness, protect those who have been abused, and prevent the destruction of families. Your donations, whether they be monetary or time, can literally help us change lives.
Donate
If you want to help ensure the continuation of needed services in the 43-county service area of LSSM, make a tax-deductible donation to maintain and expand services to the poor. Your contribution would have an enormous impact on LSSM’s ability to make a difference in the lives of individuals and families who depend on us for access to justice. Giving to LSSM is a very effective and efficient way to make a difference.
Donors
LSSM appreciates the investment of the individuals, law firms and businesses who allow us to continue our mission in helping low-income people resolve legal problems affecting their basic human needs, as well as meet our commitment to securing justice, promoting economic and family stability, and reducing poverty in our community. The generosity of our donors allows LSSM to help battered spouses escape domestic violence, defend low-income tenants in unlawful evictions and force landlords to rectify dangerous housing conditions, and protect the elderly from scams or fraud.
Partners
LSSM has a wide variety of partnerships with other organizations to ensure clients receive holistic services to help them become self-sufficient and self-sustaining in the community. LSSM partners with agencies across a 43-county service area. To access our local partners online, click here to link to their respective websites.
Judicare/Pro Bono
Priorities for our program include the expansion of services through volunteer private attorneys. LSSM utilizes private attorneys, who volunteer their time and expertise, to provide case representation to clients. Some attorneys are paid a lowered hourly fee of $50.00 per hour to handle our cases. Other private attorneys donate their time free of charge. LSSM welcomes the volunteer assistance of private attorneys who wish to help low-income people obtain equal access to justice.
CLEs
LSSM has been able to expand its services in providing quality legal representation and advice due to private bar involvement. One benefit provided by LSSM to volunteer private attorneys is free continuing legal education (CLE) courses focusing on poverty law. These MCLE approved seminars are offered several times per year. If you are interested in helping low-income people in southern Missouri you may sign-up to join the pro bono and/or judicare panels by attending one of our CLE’s. Check back with us regularly for CLE dates and times.
Training
LSSM provides training for domestic violence advocates, social workers, law enforcement and other professionals working with low-income families and the elderly. LSSM provides one-hour, half-day, and full-day seminars on a variety of topics including family law, domestic violence, counseling, human trafficking, orders of protection, housing, public benefits, consumer law, organization management, nonprofit law and various other poverty law subjects. If you or your organization are interested in having LSSM provide a customized training, please contact media@lsosm.org.
Special Events
The sponsorship of special events enables LSSM to educate the community about its services. These events also assist with raising funds to further our mission of providing quality legal aid to low-income people who have nowhere else to turn for assistance. We are happy to announce these upcoming special events. Please join us!
Career Opportunities
LSSM is committed to cultivating a new generation of public interest lawyers. Law interns work on projects and cases that have a wide-ranging and lasting impact on our client communities. Interns assist LSSM staff in providing a full range of legal services including client intake and screening, counseling, preparation of court pleadings, and representation (Rule 13 certified). Check back with us to see new internship opportunities and job postings as well as apply online.