Legal Aid of East Tennessee
607 W. Summit Hill Drive, Knoxville TN 37902
(865) 637-0484 | www.laet.org
Legal Aid of East Tennessee (LAET) is a non-profit law firm serving low-income clients with civil legal needs. Types of cases taken include: public benefits, evictions and housing (both public and private), consumer, public benefits, employment, health issues, family law and senior citizen’s issues. Clients generally must meet income and asset guidelines to be eligible for services. Senior citizens and persons with domestic violence problems may receive help regardless of income. Since the demand is far greater than the resources available, the decisions on case acceptance also depend upon priorities set by LAET, in consultation with the community.
Access helpful brochures and videos on various legal topics at http://www.laet.org/get-help/.
For those with a legal problem, telephone intake lines are open on Monday-Friday starting at 9:00 a.m. Only a limited number of cases can be handled each day, so it is best to call as soon after 9:00 a.m. as possible. ONLINE INTAKE is also available anytime through the LAET website, www.laet.org. On the home page look for the Begin On-Line Intake button.
Pro Bono Project
The Legal Aid of East Tennessee
607 W. Summit Hill Drive, Knoxville TN 37902
(865) 637-0484 | www.laet.org
The Pro Bono Project (PBP) is operated by Legal Aid of East Tennessee (LAET) in cooperation with the bar associations of Knox, Blount, Loudon and Sevier counties to support the legal community in fulfilling its mission to provide every person with effective access to the justice system. Cases that LAET is unable to take because of limited resources can often be handled by members of the private bar who volunteer their services through the PBP. PBP clients are subject to the same financial-eligibility requirements as LAET clients.
The PBP also conducts various legal advice clinics to assist clients whose legal problems can be resolved with advice and brief services. To see a list of upcoming clinic events in the area, please visit the Upcoming Legal Clinic Section of the KBA’s website at https://www.knoxbar.org/Clinics4Public. To sign up for a specific clinic, please contact Legal Aid at (865) 637-0484 and be sure to mention the clinic by name.
The Pro Bono Project also launched Pro Bono Matters in 2020 to better connect volunteer attorneys with East Tennesseans who need assistance: https://www.laet.org/pro-bono-matters/
Family Justice Center
400 Harriet Tubman Street, Knoxville TN 37915
(865) 521-6336 | http://www.fjcknoxville.org/
The mission of the Knoxville Family Justice Center is to facilitate a coordinated and comprehensive approach to ending domestic violence through collaboration, education and advocacy. Domestic violence does not discriminate. We serve anyone who is a victim of domestic violence regardless of their social identifiers. The KFJC is a safe place with caring and trained staff available to help victims of domestic violence and their children. Some of our services include: safety planning; danger assessment; Orders of Protection; prosecution; civil legal assistance; access to shelter; access to emergency pet sheltering; access to short- and long-term housing; counseling referrals; support group referrals; employment assistance referrals; and childcare assistance referrals. Please call 865-521-6336 or the online contact form to begin navigation and advocacy.
Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & The Cumberlands - Oak Ridge Office
575 Oak Ridge Turnpike, Suite 201, Oak Ridge TN 37830
(865) 483-8454 | (800) 238-1443 | https://las.org
The Oak Ridge office of the Legal Aid Society provides free legal assistance for low-income individuals who live in Anderson, Campbell, Claiborne, Morgan, Roane, Scott and Union counties.
To apply for services, call and provide information about your income, geographic location, and case. A staff member will then return your call.
Legal Aid Society serves 48 counties through 8 offices. Their work is organized through five practice groups focusing on specific needs within their service community.
- Consumer
- Employment
- Family and Domestic Violence
- Health, Income and Education
- Housing
The demand for services far exceeds the resources to provide them. Services can include representation by a staff or volunteer lawyer, advice from a staff lawyer, referral to a free legal help clinic, or referral to other legal help.
Restrictions:
No fee-generating cases or criminal cases
Legal Assistance for the Elderly Program
A Division of the East Tennessee Human Resource Agency, Inc.
9111 Cross Park Drive, Suite D-100, Knoxville TN 37923
(865) 691-2551 Ext. 4212 | Fax: (865) 531-7216
Legal Assistance for the Elderly is a part-time, federally funded program providing legal representation to qualified senior citizens in the East Tennessee area. Persons age 60 and older may be eligible if they live within one of following counties: Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Hamblen, Jefferson, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier and Union. For services in Knox County please contact Legal Aid of East Tennessee. Household income and assets are not considered when assessing eligibility. There are no fees charged to clients for services, but donations are accepted. Legal services may be provided for persons age 60 or older in the designated counties and whose cases fall within state-determined priority areas including:
- Power of Attorney (legal and healthcare)
- Qualified Income Trusts for Medicaid
For more information: www.ethra.org/programs/21/legal-assistance-for-the-elderly
University of Tennessee Legal Clinic
1505 W. Cumberland Avenue, Knoxville TN 37996
(865) 974-2331 | www.law.utk.edu/clinic
UT Legal Clinic operates seven clinics, many of which provide direct client representation: Advocacy Clinic (civil and criminal litigation), Domestic Violence Clinic, Expungement Mini-clinic, Mediation and Family Mediation, the Transactional Law Clinic, and the Homer A. Jones Wills Clinic.
Typical cases: juvenile delinquency, adult criminal, expungement, court cost waivers, housing, wills and estates (including power of attorney, conservatorship, living wills), domestic violence (protective orders and related matters), nonprofit law (formation and assistance), and business/entrepreneurship law (formation, licensing agreements, technology transfer and commercialization, and related assistance).
Restrictions vary from case to case and based on each clinic. Income level, county of residence, and educational merits of the case may be taken into account.
Second-year and third-year law students represent clients under the supervision of faculty members. Clients must be unable to afford legal counsel (falling below a certain income level for individuals), and usually are appointed by the courts or referred by local non-profit partners. Some cases are accepted through walk-ins and telephone calls if the case falls within the area of expertise covered by one of the above-mentioned clinics and has sufficient educational merit for students. Clinics that are running at capacity may not be accepting new cases.
The Legal Clinic has been operating for over 70 years and is the oldest continually-operating law school clinic in the country. For more information, please call or go to the clinic website.
Knoxville Legal Ministry
9919 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37922
(865) 693-0353 | www.administerjustice.org/knoxvillelegalministry
Knoxville Legal Ministry, a nonprofit partnered with Administer Justice, is a monthly legal aid clinic that provides the help of a lawyer and the hope of God's love. For $30, an individual can schedule a 45-minute meeting with a volunteer attorney on civil issues. An appointment can be scheduled on-line at www.administerjustice.org/knoxvillelegalministry.
The monthly clinic is held the second Saturday of each month from 8:45 a.m. to noon.
Centro Hispano de East Tennessee
2455 Sutherland Avenue, Knoxville TN 37919
(865) 522-0052 | www.centrohispanotn.org
Centro Hispano is an educational nonprofit that supports Latino and other immigrant families tp integrate successfully to Knoxville. Services include information and referrals for lawyers, doctors, schools, etc., adult English classes, children’s education, workforce development programs, youth and family engagement programs, and monthly workshops.
Please contact Centro Hispano for more information at 865-522-0052 and visit www.centrohispanotn.org for other programs available.
HELP4TN.org and TN Free Legal Answers
HELP4TN.org and tn.freelegalanswers.org
HELP4TN provides Tennesseans with legal information and advice via the phone or their website.
www.HELP4TN.org is a website with legal information, court forms, videos about court, and links to resources like TN Free Legal Answers and the Legal Wellness Checkup, which will ask some legal questions and provide you a legal report with personalized legal resources and information. It also has blog posts about your rights and chat-bots to help you resolve your legal issues.
TN.FreeLegalAnswers.org is a free, online, civil law legal clinic. The clinic allows Tennesseeans to ask up to three questions a year about specific legal problems and communicate with a volunteer lawyer using email. The free lawyer will answer questions, but cannot represent the person in court. The free lawyers on TN Free Legal Answers can help with many types of questions: family law questions, like divorce and custody; landlord-tenant and homeowner questions, questions about debts or purchases; healthcare; civil rights; and other issues.
You can apply to use TN Free Legal Answers at TN.FreeLegalAnswers.org. In order to use TN Free Legal Answers, you must live in the state of Tennessee and meet the financial requirements, like having a low household income and not much money or assets. TN Free Legal Answers is not for questions about a criminal case or for people who are incarcerated. TN Free Legal Answers is provided by the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and the American Bar Association.
For those without online access, 1-844-HELP4TN (1-844-435-7486) is a free legal helpline where Tennesseans can talk to a Tennessee lawyer about their civil legal issues. When you call HELP4TN, you will select whether you are over or under the age of 60 to make sure you get to the right lawyer. When you call, an intake specialist will schedule an appointment for you to speak with a lawyer. The lawyer may provide information about the legal process, advice on handling the legal issue, and referrals to free local resources. Due to high call volume, staff encourages those who are able, to use the website.
HELP4TN was created by the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS) with funding provided by West Tennessee Legal Services, the National Association of Social Workers, TN Chapter, and the Legal Services Corporation (LSC).
Legal Resource Guide
Finding Legal Assistance in Knoxville
A Public Service of the Knoxville Bar Association
The Knoxville Bar Association is pleased to provide the following directory of Legal Service providers in our community. Learn about government agencies, nonprofits, pro bono organizations and others who help to ensure that all citizens have equal access to justice.