The Public Justice Center will present its services and discuss how they can help the Eastern Shore at a program on Monday, March 4.
The organization offers free legal services to low-income individuals and groups in areas such as employment, housing, governmental bureaucracy and others. The 7:30 p.m. presentation is jointly sponsored by the Kent County League of Women Voters and the Unitarian Universalists of the Chester River, at the latter’s church on Gateway Drive in the Crest View neighborhood of northern Chestertown.
The speaker will be John Nethercut, the organization’s executive director.
Formed in 1985 by two lawyers, the Public Justice Center now consists of 10 attorneys among a staff of 20 people with headquarters in Baltimore. The group’s mission is to advocate for Maryland’s low-income people in the courts, legislatures, government agencies, and through public education and coalition building.
“We feel there are likely many people on the Shore who could use trained advocates in dealing with serious problems,” said Jeanette Sherbondy, president of the Kent league.
Sherbondy mentioned a recent article in the Baltimore media about an employee of a Somerset County convenience store who was required to work 72 hours in a week but was not paid at overtime rate for her hours over 40. “According to the center’s website, wage and hour abuses are common in a recession,” she said. The website is www.publicjustice.org.
While fighting for individuals, the Public Justice Center focuses on what it calls “systemic issues” – unfair rules that harm large numbers of people.
A recent study by the Maryland Access to Justice Commission show that the work of civil legal services programs in the state brings in millions of federal dollars, improving the lives of low-income Marylanders, and saving the State millions in expenditures. The report quantifies the value of four systemic impact cases, including three done by the Public Justice Center, as $161 million of economic benefit per year for low-income tenants, homeowners, and families applying for emergency benefits.
For more information on the Kent League of Women Voters, see the website www.kent1.lwvmd.org.
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