By MATT CHANDLER
mchandler@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1654

Ask Michelle Killian how important civil legal services are to Western New Yorkers and she will tell you: priceless.

She was among a handful of individuals testifying last week before a panel looking into the unmet needs of low-income New Yorkers. The panel, led by Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, conducted a series of public meetings across the state that concluded in Buffalo Oct. 6.

Killian is a client of Neighborhood Legal Services, one of five civil legal service agencies in the city.

"If it weren't for NLS, I would never have received the help I needed to get off of public assistance," she told the panel.

She and others shared their stories about foreclosures, overcoming domestic violence, illnesses and residency issues in an effort to highlight the need for continued and increased finding for civil legal services.

William Hawkes is executive director of Neighborhood Legal Services.

"When you look at the sum total of all of the interests that are served from these programs, it really cries out for better support for the civil legal services infrastructure," he said. "I think after this hearing, it could not have been clearer what the human impact is when people are able to receive these services and also what the awful consequences are when resources are not there to represent these individuals."

Hawkes said despite the fact that the state is in dire financial straits, he came away optimistic that programs such as his will receive strong state support in the coming year.

"Judge Lippman is the most significant supporter of funding for civil legal services that we have ever seen on a statewide basis," he said. "The fact that he has such a profound understanding of the need for civil legal services I think bodes well."

Robert Elardo leads the Volunteer Lawyers Project, another local program being forced to turn away needy clients due to lack of funding. Like Hawkes, he sees Lippman as a major asset to the cause. He said he also came away from the hearings with a sense of optimism.

"The speakers all talked about how the programs are working together, but there is just an overwhelming need that can't be met with existing resources," Elardo said. "For every dollar invested in civil legal services invested in New York, the state gets at least a $5 return."

That comes from assisting people who no longer need public assistance, combined with money that then comes into clients' pockets from federal resources, according to Elardo, including SSI.

"When you look at it that way, it is not only the right thing to do, it is a good investment," he said.

Elardo, however, has been in the business long enough to know that regardless of the state's commitment, there isn't going to be enough money next year to meet the demand for services in Western New York.

"It's incremental," he said of the funding solution. "If they can increase the amount (of funding) each year, we will get closer and we will turn fewer people away. And that's the ultimate goal."

Until then, he said, civil legal services programs will struggle to meet the needs of the low-income community and the needy will get turned away at the door, often with no other place to turn.

It is a grim notion that those at the state level say is unacceptable, including New York State Bar President Vincent Doyle III.

"We need to address the funding," Doyle said. "We know it is the right thing to do, but it will also save the state money in the long run."

He said the hearings have resonated loud and clear across the state, and leaders clearly see the priority of increasing the funding. He also offered a comparative look at Buffalo versus the rest of New York when it comes to civil legal services.

"I think there are different problems in each part of the state," he said. "You go to New York City and the need is overwhelming, based on their large population. But you go to some of the rural parts of the state and their issues come down to having access to the services that are available. So there are problems statewide; they are just different."

Buffalo city leaders said it's a numbers game, and the numbers are growing annually.

Said Elardo: "The bottom line is that we are meeting the needs of only a small fraction of the people who come through our doors."