Civil legal services can help access services to recover

An $8 million grant to support Wisconsinites, who need legal assistance to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, was announced. The grant will be made to the Wisconsin Trust Account Foundation Inc. (WisTAF), to fund civil legal aid organizations statewide and to build a Wisconsin Law Help website, a user-friendly online legal assistance portal that will help Wisconsinites access accurate legal information.

Established in 1986, by the Wisconsin Supreme Court, the non-profit WisTAF is the leading state-based funder of legal aid in Wisconsin. It works with, and provides funds to, civil legal aid organizations, so Wisconsinites with low incomes, can access legal services.

The grant announced will allow the WisTAF and its partner organizations to furnish civil legal aid interventions to Wisconsinites, who face foreclosure, eviction and other housing-related problems from COVID-19; need legal assistance to access unemployment benefits, workforce opportunities or health coverage; or still struggle with other economic hardships related to the pandemic.

“It is imperative that no family is left behind as we continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Department of Children and Families secretary Emilie Amundson. “Supporting community partners like WisTAF, means that folks who have been especially hard hit these last few years, now have opportunities to improve their lives and bounce back stronger.”

To view pandemic-related assistance information for families, farmers, businesses, organizations and communities, visit Badger Bounceback.wi.gov.