Free Legal Help for Tennesseans
A web-based pro bono clinic where low-income Tennesseans can ask civil legal questions and receive advice from volunteer attorneys.
Based on the traditional walk-in clinic model, moved online.
Post a civil legal question online at no cost.
Hundreds of licensed Tennessee attorneys provide brief advice.
Receive limited-scope guidance and information for your situation.
This service now operates as Tennessee Free Legal Answers, part of the national American Bar Association platform built on the Online TN Justice model.
Online TN Justice was a web-based pro bono legal clinic serving low-income Tennesseans who might otherwise fall through the cracks of traditional legal assistance. For many users, an answer from a licensed Tennessee attorney was the only legal help they would receive.
From a Tennessee pilot to a nationwide platform.
Online TN Justice launched as a virtual pro bono clinic, the vision of Buck Lewis, a Baker Donelson shareholder and past president of the Tennessee Bar Association. The idea: bring the traditional walk-in legal clinic model online so volunteer attorneys could answer civil legal questions from low-income Tennesseans.
The Tennessee model proved successful and was adopted by other states, with additional jurisdictions launching their own versions of the virtual clinic.
The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service adopted the model nationally as ABA Free Legal Answers, now operating in more than 40 jurisdictions and serving the public and veterans.
In Tennessee, the service continues today as Tennessee Free Legal Answers. Since its inception, the program has received hundreds of thousands of questions from participants seeking pro bono legal advice.