Legal Question in Administrative Law in California

Re: Free Attorney

There are two major kinds of free legal services. The first is the public defender's office, which is a taxpayer-supported public agency that defends those accused of criminal offenses who can't afford a private attorney. The right to be represented by an attorney is constitutionally guaranteed to criminal defendants. The other major category is lawyers who donate their services "pro bono" as a kind of charity, to help people other than criminal defendants who are in legal trouble. Some of these services are provided through groups that specialize in particular legal issues, such as tenants' rights or battered women's rights. The best way to find free legal assistance is to call your county's bar association or a lawyer referral or legal aid service, any and all of which should be listed in the phone book or you can find them on the Internet by using a search engine such as Google. Another possibility would be to ask the clerk of the Family Law Division at the courthouse.