Lycoming Law Association provides funding for attorneys to represent victims of domestic violence
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The Lycoming Law Association Foundation awarded $20,000 to North Penn Legal Services (NPLS), to contract with private attorneys for the representation of low-income victims of domestic violence who are trying to obtain protection for themselves and their children. In 2021, there was a surge in the number of these petitions filed in Lycoming County. Typically, the plaintiffs in these cases are referred to North Penn Legal Services, and NPLS assigns a staff attorney to represent them or finds a local attorney, who agrees to represent them for free. The Lycoming County bar has a long-standing history of volunteering to represent plaintiffs in these cases, but the resources of the local bar and NPLS cannot meet the increasing need for help, and the county judges are seeing more cases in which neither side has representation. Most PFAs are settled by agreement, which is negotiated by an attorney. When neither party is represented, there is little opportunity to settle, and the result is more contested hearings, with victims of abuse trying to present evidence and question the opposing party on their own. Representation of at least one party increases settlement and improves outcomes.