On July 1, 2021 we launched our Legal Aid Alliance program. This program is our pledge to donate one dollar for every document processed on our platform to support non-profit legal aid organizations across the United States.
We know that accessing the legal system is often a complex and expensive process and that many of our underprivileged neighbors are systematically disadvantaged by our justice system. As a result, our program is designed to support a number of the 132 vetted, nonprofit legal aid organizations under the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) that work with underserved communities in areas like domestic violence, employment discrimination, opioid addiction, veterans justice, disaster recovery, and much more.
We are excited to announce that the results of our effort last year are in! Together with our customers, we donated over $80,000 to 54 organizations under the LSC umbrella*! Here are the top five recipients of Ontra’s Legal Aid Alliance program in 2021:
- Legal Services NYC: Legal Services NYC was founded in 1968 as part of the War on Poverty. What started as a loose confederation of neighborhood-based legal services programs has grown into the nation’s largest civil legal services provider, with a citywide force of over 500 staff helping more than 110,000 low-income New Yorkers annually.
- Legal Aid Chicago: Legal Aid Chicago seeks justice for people living in poverty. Through litigation and advocacy, a 150-person team of full-time lawyers and staff fight to secure individual rights to affordable housing, basic healthcare, fair working conditions, protection from abuse and economic stability.
- Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association: For over forty years, Volunteer Lawyers Project has strived to give equal access to representation for the people of Greater Boston, standing up for those who are from lower income households and in need of legal aid. Their efforts are propelled by a strong team of volunteers—including attorneys, paralegals, and law students from all segments of the legal community—that work together with an entire dedicated staff.
- Bay Area Legal Aid (California): BayLegal is committed to providing meaningful access to the civil justice system through quality legal assistance regardless of a client’s location, language or disability. Access to legal advocacy is critical to ensuring that Bay Area residents living in poverty understand and assert their rights, in order to create stability for themselves and their families.
- Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles: Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles is a nonprofit law firm that protects and advances the rights of the most underserved – leveling the playing field and ensuring that everyone can have access to the justice system. Every year, LAFLA provides free, high-quality legal services to more than 100,000 people living in poverty across Greater Los Angeles.
We are extremely proud of what we were able to accomplish together and look forward to making an even more sizable difference in 2022.
*This amount includes documents processed in the Americas from July 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021. If customers did not select where their funds would go, a charity was chosen on their behalf based on their geography.
