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On Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Alaskans in four cities can sit down with an attorney and get legal advice for free.
The Alaska Bar Association will host the free legal clinics in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. as a "powerful way of building community and providing service," Krista Scully, pro bono director of the Alaska Bar Association, said in a written statement.
"The need for pro bono service and equal justice access in Alaska is acute. According to the Alaska Supreme Court Civil Access to Justice Task Force Report, approximately 50 percent of Alaska's 80,000 low-income citizens will face a legal need in any given year," the statement said.
[Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event set]
Attorneys will be available to answer questions about family law, landlord-tenant law, public benefits and general civil legal issues.
The clinics are first come, first served. In Anchorage, the clinic will run from from noon to 5:30 p.m. at the Mountain View Boys & Girls Club. In Palmer, legal consultations will be available from 4 to 7 p.m. at Mat-Su Senior Services.
The Fairbanks event will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the JP Jones Community Development Center. In Juneau, free legal advice will be available from 9 a.m. to noon at Alaska Legal Services and 1 to 4 p.m. at Dimond Courthouse.
The Alaska Bar Association has hosted the clinics, partnering with the Alaska Court System and Alaska Legal Services Corp., for nine years.
The association said that more than 3,000 Alaskans have gotten free legal advice over the years, from 1,230 lawyers who have donated 5,610 hours of legal services.