Predatory debt settlement and debt repair companies often target financially distressed consumers with promises of reduced debt, improved credit, and quick financial relief--while leaving many clients in deeper financial hardship, facing lawsuits, damaged credit, and mounting fees. Participants will learn how debt settlement and credit repair schemes operate and will leave with actionable guidance for intake screening, litigation and negotiation strategies, and trauma-informed approaches to assisting vulnerable clients navigating significant financial distress.

Sharing modest litigation success at the state level and within administrative agencies when possible to secure language access in spite of federal challenges.

Being accused of child abuse or neglect is more than just a social or moral stigma. It causes insurmountable barriers to employment and retraining for thousands of low-wage workers every year. These workers are disproportionately from communities of color, which have historically been targeted for enforcement by state child protective service agencies. This panel will show you how these disqualifications harms communities, how to see how your communities are impacted, and reveal the strategies we've used to systemically attack the disqualifications that keep qualified people from working.

What do law students know about AI coming out of law school? What challenges and opportunities to these students pose/provide for new employers? A panel of academics and legal aid professionals will discuss what law students are learning about AI while in law school, and how these same students pose challenges to new employers, but also bring opportunities to new employers as they enter the workforce.

As education civil rights face new pressure nationwide, legal advocates are developing innovative strategies to protect students and challenge systemic inequities. This session highlights litigation and advocacy from the frontlines, including efforts addressing discriminatory discipline, literacy rights for students with disabilities, and protections for students experiencing homelessness, in foster care, and in immigrant families. Speakers will share practical approaches legal aid programs can use to defend students' rights and advance education equity in an increasingly challenging environment.

Using Legal Services of Eastern Missouri's Neighborhood Advocacy initiative as a case study, the presentation will discuss the practical realities of group representation under LSC regulations, including eligibility considerations, representation of nonprofit entities, restrictions and opportunities under the LSC framework, and structuring compliant advocacy strategies. The session will also explore how transactional law, litigation, and pro bono partnerships can be combined to support community-led revitalization efforts.

Use communications strategies to leverage litigation, reshape public narratives, elevate client stories, and advance long-term policy change. Strategic litigation can do more than win legal victories. It can reshape how the public, the media, and policymakers understand the lives and needs of low-income communities. This session explores how advocates can use litigation as a communications opportunity, from framing the complaint to engaging media, elevating client stories, and sustaining narrative change beyond the courtroom. Participants will learn practical strategies to align legal and communications goals to advance long-term policy change.

This session explores ways that state and local legal aid organizations can work together with national legal organizations to achieve systemic reforms. Collaboration can take many forms, including legislative and policy advocacy, impact litigation, and more! Presenters will share inspiring examples, helpful practice tips, and reflect on how our community can best respond to recent legal and political obstacles that make systemic litigation more challenging. This session will empower you to go forth and collaborate!

This session provides practical strategies for building and sustaining an effective litigation program within a legal services organization, with a focus on improving case outcomes and strengthening advocacy. It emphasizes developing and supporting attorneys--particularly newer staff--to think and act as confident, zealous advocates, while fostering a culture that prioritizes meaningful results over quick resolution. Participants will also explore approaches to retaining talent and creating an environment where high-quality, impact-driven litigation can thrive.

This session explores how legal aid organizations use appellate advocacy to pursue justice. Panelists will discuss the appeals they handle, how they choose issues to pursue, and the role appeals play in shaping the law. Presenters will also address how they build appellate teams, create resources and cultures of advocacy, and navigate practical challenges such as limited capacity and resources, and strategies organizations use to overcome them.