HOUSTON, TEXAS – Legal Services Corporation (LSC) and its Texas grantee organizations, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA), Lone Star Legal Aid (LSLA), and Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas (LANWT) welcome advocates and civic leaders to attend their forum on January 22, 2024, in Houston, Texas, to discuss the ongoing rise in reported incidences of domestic violence.

In the span of the last ten years, the number of victims murdered by an intimate partner by a firearm in Texas has nearly doubled, according to the Texas Council on Family Violence. In 2022, it was reported that 216 Texans were murdered by intimate partners, with 70% of those cases including a firearm, continuing the urgent need to support victims and survivors of domestic violence in Texas.

“TRLA and the legal aid system are essential in ensuring that survivors of abuse have quality representation,” says Amber VanSchuyver, TRLA Attorney and Domestic Violence and Family Law Group Coordinator. “I have seen firsthand, over the last fifteen years, the impact TRLA has had not only on survivors and their families in obtaining what they need to feel safe but also the impact our attorneys have made within their local communities in educating others on the dynamics of domestic violence.”

This free and open-to-the-public event will feature speakers and panel discussions on domestic violence and the barriers to justice for low-income Texans. The luncheon and forum mark the commencement of a series of events scheduled nationwide to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the LSC, the foremost supporter of civil legal aid in the United States, under the theme "Protecting the Promise."

“Having access to legal help can balance the uneven power dynamics in abusive relationships,” said Harriet Miers, chair of the Texas Access to Justice Commission and co-chair of LSC’s Leaders Council. “We want to talk about ways to make legal assistance more accessible, especially for people with lower incomes.”

LSC will also present Pro Bono Service Awards to six lawyers for their significant contributions to promoting access to justice through volunteer services. Each Texas grantee nominated their respective recipients, and the TRLA nominations include Jacqueline L. Moy, Chief Counsel for Energy Transfer, and Amy Warr, Partner at Alexander Dubose Jefferson & Townsend, LLP, for their pro bono support in their respective TRLA cases.

To conclude the forum, LSC commemorates TRLA’s late Executive Director, David G. Hall, a legal legend, with a resolution to honor his devotion to Texas and contributions to social justice across the state and beyond. To learn more about David and his legacy, please visit the TRLA David G. Hall website: https://www.trla.org/david-g-hall.

The event will occur Monday, January 22, 2024, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Magnolia Hotel Houston. TRLA and the partnered grantee organizations will also livestream the event via LSC’s Facebook page. To learn more about this public forum or to register, please visit: https://www.lsc.gov/events/special-luncheon-and-forum-increasing-access-justice.

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For media inquiries, please contact:

Sam Rucobo, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, Public Relations Manager, srucobo@trla.org 

Carl Rauscher, Legal Services Corporation, Director of Communications and Media Relations, rauscherc@lsc.gov

Clarissa Ayala, Director of Communications, Lone Star Legal Aid, cayala@lonestartlegal.org

Shelby Jean, Director of Communications, Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, jeans@lanwt.org

Texas RioGrande Legal Aid provides free legal services to people who cannot afford an attorney in 68 southwestern counties, including the entire Texas-Mexico border. TRLA attorneys specialize in more than 45 areas of law, including disaster assistance, family, employment, landlord-tenant, housing, education, immigration, farmworker, and civil rights. Our hotline is open from 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (CST) Monday - Friday: (956)-996-TRLA (8752) or toll-free at (833) 329-TRLA (8752).

Legal Services Corporation (LSC) is dedicated to ensuring equal access to justice under the law for all Americans. By providing funding and support to legal aid organizations across the nation, LSC empowers low-income individuals and families to navigate the legal system and secure their rights. With a rich history of advocacy and impactful initiatives, LSC continues to be a driving force in the pursuit of justice and equality. For more information, visit www.lsc.gov.

Lone Star Legal Aid (LSLA) is a 501(c)(3) that focuses on advocacy for low-income and underserved populations by providing free legal education, advice, and representation. LSLA serves millions of people at 125% of federal poverty guidelines who live in 72 counties in the eastern and Gulf Coast regions of Texas and 4 counties in Southwest Arkansas. LSLA focuses its resources on maintaining, enhancing, and protecting income and economic stability; preserving housing; improving outcomes for children; establishing and sustaining family safety, stability, health, and wellbeing; and assisting populations with special vulnerabilities, like those with disabilities, the aging, survivors of crime and disasters, the unemployed and underemployed, the unhoused, those with limited English language skills, and the LGBTQIA+ community.

Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas (LANWT) strives to meet the legal needs of more than 1.5 million eligible clients in its 114-county service area. The fifth-largest Legal Aid program in the United States, LANWT provides a wide variety of free legal services to low-income and underserved clients, including family law, wills and end-of-life documents, landlord/tenant issues, public benefits, real property, foreclosure prevention, and community revitalization matters.