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HISTORY
In 1995, Congress began considering a series of restrictions designed to
preserve funding for the Legal Services Corporation, yet curtail
perceived “liberal” activism by federally-funded legal services programs
across the country. These restrictions, which Congress enacted in 1996,
prohibit legal services programs from receiving federal funds for certain
activities including, among other things, filing class-action litigation,
representing undocumented workers or prisoners, and requesting or
receiving attorneys' fees. In response to this development, a legal
services program headquartered in Toledo—Advocates for Basic Legal
Equality (ABLE) —contacted several Toledo lawyers concerning creation of
an independent non-profit organization primarily designed to receive
referrals of restricted cases from Ohio’s legal services programs. In
October of 1995, EJF received a start-up grant from ABLE and became
incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. EJF opened its
offices in Toledo but, after its initial success, relocated to Columbus
to better achieve a statewide presence.
MISSION
EJF’s primary mission is the direct representation of individuals and
organizations in class-action and other types of cases raising issues of
statewide or regional significance for low-income persons (frequently
referred to as impact litigation).
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