A new initiative has debuted to deliver more legal help directly to rural communities in northwest Ohio and build a stronger pipeline of attorneys committed to serving them.

For many rural Ohioans, a legal problem can quickly become a family, housing, financial, farming, or small business crisis – especially when affordable legal help is difficult to find close to home. The Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA) reports that 78 out of 88 counties are considered legal deserts, with fewer than one attorney per 1,000 residents. In several northwest Ohio counties, the shortage is even more pronounced because many current lawyers are near retirement, and too few new attorneys are entering the profession.

To respond to the challenge in a practical and community-centered way, the OSBA, Ohio State Bar Foundation, Ohio Northern University Claude W. Pettit College of Law, and University of Toledo College of Law have launched “Lawyers = Justice: A Northwest Ohio Legal Collaborative.” According to their announcement, the initiative will provide support to new lawyers, train law students, and expand local legal clinics, with the goal to help residents address legal problems earlier, nearer to where they live. The organizations expect that the project can prevent problems before they become more disruptive and costly, and possibly land in court.

OSBA President Jan Allen Baughman said the association is proud to partner with the foundation and the two Ohio law schools because collaboration is essential to solving this challenge.

“This project strengthens Ohio’s legal services pipeline by addressing the attorney shortage and expanding access,” said Baughman. “Ohioans are best served when they have the support of a good lawyer.”

Bringing Legal Help Closer to Home
Lawyers = Justice will establish a hybrid fellowship–clinic model that is designed to:

• Support four newly licensed lawyer fellows each year as they build sustainable private practices in underserved northwest Ohio communities.
• Provide up to 40 law students annually with hands-on, clinical experience serving rural clients under the supervision of experienced attorneys and law school faculty.
• Expand access to legal services for an estimated 720 people each year, through the fellows’ private practices and new or enhanced satellite legal clinics.
• Build a long-term path from law school to rural practice through mentoring, skills training, and community-based experience.

Recruitment of fellows and law students begins in September, with a plan to have the clinics fully staffed and operational later this fall, the organizations state.

One clinic will operate in Lima, managed by ONU Law, and the other will be located in Bowling Green, managed by Toledo Law. The ONU Law clinic will initially serve income-eligible residents in Allen, Auglaize, Hardin, Putnam and Van Wert counties. The Toledo Law clinic will initially serve residents in Fulton, Hancock, Henry, Ottawa and Wood counties.

The clinics are expected to help residents with essential legal needs, including family law, estate planning, real estate, consumer protection, small business issues, criminal law, and other matters that affect daily life and community stability.

Attorney fellows will be tasked with building private practices in the region and offering affordable representation to individuals, families, farmers, and small businesses, including those who may not qualify for legal aid but still cannot easily afford traditional legal services.

Rebecca Zietlow, dean of Toledo Law, is excited about the project.

“This innovative collaborative clinic is one of the first of its kind in the country to provide training for students to serve clients in rural areas and train attorneys to pursue careers in underserved rural areas,” Zietlow noted. “It helps to meet a crucial need in this state – the lack of rural access to justice.”

Long-Term Investment in Rural Justice
Lawyers = Justice is funded through a $1.465 million grant from the Ohio State Bar Foundation. Together, with in-kind support from the law schools and the OSBA, the grant will support fellow stipends, clinic operations, staffing, office space, technology infrastructure, outreach, and travel across the region for an initial three-year term.

The partners hope to expand the project beyond the first three years and explore whether the model can be replicated in other parts of Ohio facing similar attorney shortages.

The groups state that Lawyers = Justice will align with Ohio’s newly established Northwest Regional Hub Pilot, which provides legal defense for those without the means to pay, and with the recently expanded statewide Rural Practice Incentive Program. The incentive program provides loan repayment for newer attorneys who agree to practice in underserved communities for at least three years. Service as prosecutors, public defenders, and certain court-appointed attorneys qualify for the loan program.

The Supreme Court of Ohio is committed to expanding access to justice, especially in rural communities and legal deserts where legal services are limited. Through programs, partnerships, and resources that recruit, train, and retain attorneys in underserved areas, the Supreme Court works to close the justice gap and ensure equitable access to legal representation for all. Learn more about Access to Justice Resources and Careers in Law.