Administrative Office of Courts
Free family law clinics to be held in Cleveland, Greenwood and Clarksdale May 25, 2018 Free family law clinics will be held in Cleveland, Greenwood and Clarksdale in June as part of a statewide Access to Justice effort to help poor people find legal representation. The civil legal clinic schedule for the Seventh Chancery Court District includes: • June 16, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Bolivar County Courthouse, 200 South Court Street, Cleveland, for Bolivar County residents; The family law clinics will offer assistance with adoptions, uncontested divorces, emancipation of minors, guardianships, birth certificate corrections, name changes and wills. All matters must be uncontested. If the matters are more complex, persons seeking assistance will be advised to seek the assistance of an attorney outside the clinic. The family law clinics are designed to give people enough basic legal advice and directions so that they can handle simple legal matters on their own in Chancery Court. Local volunteer attorneys at the legal clinics will help clients prepare documents, give limited legal advice and help them get ready to go to court on their own. The attorneys are not expected to accompany clinic participants to later court appearances. Chancellor Catherine Farris-Carter will attend the clinics in Cleveland and Clarksdale and be available to sign documents if needed. Chancellor W.M. Sanders will attend the clinic in Greenwood. Thirty free family law clinics are scheduled across the state during June, which is Access to Justice Month. Here is the link for the statewide schedule throughout June and later in the year: https://courts.ms.gov/newsite2/Legal/CivilLegal.php. Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. has called for civil legal clinics to be held throughout the state. Every Chancery Court district has agreed to host a free civil legal clinic this year. Local bar associations have worked with the Access to Justice Commission and the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project to organize the clinics. Access to Justice Commission Executive Director Nicole McLaughlin said, “Civil legal aid helps people protect their livelihoods, their health and their families. We are proud that our legal community continues to support access to justice for those in need. Through the scheduled legal clinics, we will be able to assist an unprecedented amount of Mississippians with family law issues.” People seeking legal assistance at one of the family law clinics in the Seventh Chancery Court District can call the court at 662-451-7289 for additional information. #### |
