About Us

You will need to complete an application online or by phone to see if you are eligible for help with your legal problem. You can also visit our Contact Info page to find other options to get in touch with us.

Judicare Legal Aid typically helps with civil legal problems, including:

Evictions
Divorce
Public benefits
Bankruptcy
And more

Visit our Legal Coverage Areas page for a detailed description of the cases we handle. Please note that the easiest way to learn if we can help with your legal problem is to apply online or by phone.

Judicare Legal Aid typically cannot help with the following legal problems:

Criminal defense in state court
Fee-generating cases (ex. Personal injury)
Class action lawsuits
Abortion
Traffic tickets
And more

Visit our Legal Coverage Areas page for a detailed description of the cases we handle. Please note that the easiest way to learn if we can help with your legal problem is to apply online or by phone.

Applications are processed within 3-5 business days. A Client Service Specialist will call or email you if additional information is needed. If you feel you cannot wait or should not wait for us to contact you, please call our office.

Judicare Legal Aid is limited in the cases we can accept based on our funding restrictions and capacity. As a result, our management, in collaboration with our Board of Directors, sets guidelines for cases we can accept. There are a number of reasons why your application may have been denied, including:

You might not have a problem that a lawyer can help with;
You might have a legal problem that Judicare doesn’t or can’t help with;
Your legal problem may not have merit under the laws and regulations;
Your income or assets may exceed what we are able to cover;
Your legal problem could be outside of our service area;
Your income may be too high;
Your total assets may be too high; or
There could be a conflict of interest.

If you believe your application is denied in error, please email grievance@judicare.org to request a review of the denial.

In a nutshell, a conflict of interest means that Judicare Legal Aid has enough knowledge about a party connected to you or your case which may result in an unfair advantage or disadvantage to either you or another client.

According to Wisconsin Supreme Court Rule 20:1.7, a conflict of interest is when the representation of one client will be harmful to another client; or there is a big risk that the representation of one or more clients will be greatly limited by the lawyer’s responsibilities to another client, former client, or personal interest of the lawyer.

Due to Wisconsin’s Rules of Professional Conduct, we as attorneys are bound by confidentiality and are not allowed to disclose to you the specifics of the conflict. Judicare Legal Aid simply has a conflict of interest that cannot be waived.

Typically, Judicare Legal Aid cannot represent someone in prison or jail; however, there are exceptions to this rule. The best way to learn if your legal issue fits an exception, you should apply for services. Learn how to apply by visiting our Contact Us page.

Please visit our Eligibility page to see if you may be eligible for help from Judicare Legal Aid. You can also apply online or by phone to see if you qualify for legal help from Judicare.

Nothing. Judicare’s services our free to eligible individuals. Please visit our Eligibility page or apply online or by phone to see if you are eligible for help.

Please be aware that some cases may come with fees –for example, Guardian ad Litem fees in a case involving child custody and/or placement. There is some possibility that we have received funding to cover court fees in certain cases, but you should otherwise expect to pay any case-related fees that may come up. Your attorney will discuss these with you, if it applies to your case.

Not yet. A consultation allows you to talk through your legal problem with an advocate or attorney, and to get legal advice approved by an attorney. At the consultation, our staff member will let you know whether we are going to be able to take your case on for full representation and be your lawyer at future hearings.

Our representation agreements outline for you what legal problem we agreed to help you with and what our policies are for cases. In order to move forward with your case, we do need a signed representation agreement.

No. If you need help with another legal problem, you will need to talk to your attorney about what your options are for getting additional help.

For example, if you and your attorney signed a representation agreement for an eviction, your attorney is not guaranteed to also represent you in a subsequent divorce.Your attorney may refer you to one of our family attorneys or have you reapply, depending on how long ago you submitted your application.

There are a number of ways you can support Judicare Legal Aid,including:

Donate
Volunteer – in our mediation program or to take pro bono cases
Sign up to be a participating attorney and take Judicare cases at a reduced rate
Golf with us during our annual Golf for Justice event
Visit our Get Involved page for more details about how you can support Judicare.

You can either make a general donation that will go toward supporting Judicare’s mission of equal justice for all.

You can also donate directly to a specific legal area, for example:

Evictions
Victims of crime
Family cases
And more

Learn more about supporting Judicare Legal Aid by visiting our Get Involved page or our Donate page.

Judicare Legal Aid is primarily funded by the Legal Services Corporation. Judicare also receives funding from the following sources:

The Wisconsin Trust Fund Account Foundation
Wisconsin Equal Justice Fund
State-funded grants
Federally-funded grants
Private foundation grants
Community support
Private donations
And more

If you’re interested in supporting Judicare’s ability to provide civil legal services to Wisconsin residents in the Northern 33 counties and Native Americans statewide, donate here.

We do! Every year we host our Golf for Justice Fundraiser in the fall. Visit our Donate page for more information.

Judicare Mediation Services offers free mediation services in a number of counties in our service area. To learn more about the program and who to contact, visit our Judicare Mediation Services page.