The CBF partnered with three graduate students from the IIT Institute of Design to study and develop recommendations for a central starting place/resource center for people without lawyers at or near the main civil courthouse in downtown Chicago (the Richard J. Daley Center, 50 W. Washington, Chicago). After conducting in-depth observation, research and analysis on existing services for people without lawyers in the Circuit Court of Cook County, the majority of the report identifies specific concept recommendations for features and services that the central starting point/resource center could include.

In addition to the fundamental impact of legal aid in helping to ensure equal access to justice, a new study published by The Chicago Bar Foundation and the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation found that legal aid in Illinois produces almost a 2:1 return on investment. Using a limited sample, the study found that legal aid services produced economic benefits of more than $70M in a year.

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Law libraries can play an integral role in the courts and justice system in the 21st Century, but only if they focus their orientation towards helping the public access the legal system. This report, which was released by Zorza & Associates and was co-sponsored by The Chicago Bar Foundation and several other state access to justice commissions across the country, identifies changes to the law library landscape over the past twenty years and the potentially critical new role they can play as an access to justice resource for people without lawyers.

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Legal Aid in Cook County: A Report on Basic Trends
in Need, Service and Funding

This 2010 report addresses the current demand for legal aid services, how services are being provided and where funding comes from for this work.

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Investing in Justice: A Framework for Effective Recruitment and Retention of Illinois Legal Aid Attorneys

This 2006 study published by The Chicago Bar Foundation and the Illinois Coalition for Equal Justice takes an in-depth look at the work of legal aid attorneys and the recruitment and retention of this group of dedicated lawyers.

The Legal Aid Safety Net: A Report on the Legal Needs of Low-Income Illinoisans

The 2005 Legal Aid Safety Net report examines the legal needs of the poor, the effectiveness of current legal aid in meeting these needs, and identifies steps that could be taken to maximize the effectiveness of legal aid.

See the Executive Summary