Support Legal Aid in Illinois through a Cy Pres/Residual Funds Award

Designating the Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois as a recipient of class action residual funds will help build and sustain the legal aid delivery system statewide.

Under Illinois statute (735 ILCS 5/2-807), at least 50 percent of residual funds in a class action settlement or judgment are to be distributed to eligible organizations – those which provide or support civil legal assistance to low-income people. The Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois (LTF) is an appropriate, eligible and grateful recipient of such residual funds.

LTF is Illinois' primary state-based funder of organizations that provide legal aid to people facing domestic violence, homelessness, loss of income and other civil legal problems. Since 1983, LTF has made more than $100 million in grants to not-for-profit law offices providing representation to people who have nowhere else to turn.  LTF has also used funding and its institutional capabilities to pioneer many initiatives to build and improve the legal aid system:

  1. Computerizing legal aid offices (1990 - 1991)
  2. Supporting the founding  of CARPLS, Illinois’ first legal aid hotline (1993)
  3. Spearheading the launch of online legal information for consumers and lawyers through Illinois Legal Aid Online (2000)
  4. Conducting statewide legal needs studies (1989 and 2005)
  5. Establishing self-help legal centers for pro se litigants in 53 downstate counties through the Illinois Coalition for Equal Justice (2005 - 2010)
  6. Upgrading case management systems for legal aid providers (2008 - 2011)

A cy pres award made from unclaimed residual funds will extend LTF’s ability to support legal aid grantees across Illinois and pursue more improvements to the legal aid system during a time of great demand for legal assistance.

Please consider designating the Lawyers Trust Fund as the recipient of residual funds in the next class action settlement or judgment you are involved with.  To learn more please contact LTF Executive Director Ruth Ann Schmitt at 312-938-2106.
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