Native American Access to Justice Practitioner Network

The UNM Clinical Law Program works with volunteer attorneys and tribal court advocates through the Native American Access to Justice Practitioner Network to provide pro bono or reduced-fee representation to Native American clients whose cases the Southwest Indian Law Clinic cannot accept. Network volunteers receive client referrals from the program, but they decide whether to accept a specific case and are responsible for fee arrangements. In return, Network volunteers receive free access to Loislaw (an Internet-based database of federal & 50-state primary law), four Aspen online practice libraries with forms (family law, elder law, personal injury, and general litigation), and the Navajo Code CD-ROM.

The Native American Access to Justice Practitioner Network, under the sponsorship of Sen. Leonard Tsosie, received a special appropriation from the New Mexico Legislature to provide network members with free access to legal research databases. The program databases were also sponsored in part by Loislaw, a Wolters Kluwer business.

UNM Law librarians provide network volunteers with telephone reference service and online legal research training in the use of the program databases. Free online legal research training sessions will be offered at the UNM Law Library, Crownpoint Institute Library, San Juan College Library, UNM Gallup Library, and others. Below are some of the past training dates and locations:

For up-to-date information about the online legal research training schedule, please contact Associate Professor, Carol Parker, UNM Law Library Director, (505) 277-0938 or cparker@law.unm.edu.

For information about joining the Native American Access to Justice Practitioner Network, please see the UNM Clinical Law Program website, or contact Associate Dean Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, Director of UNM Clinical Law Programs, (505) 277-5265 or lopez@law.unm.edu.