Kind of a law question. (But Hip Forums doesn't seem to have a law section.) What happens when an indigent gets sued? I know in criminal cases, the state is obligated to provide a lawyer. But what about just plain lawsuits? Also, I know some lawyers work on contingency. But that is not guaranteed. Esp. if you're the one being sued. Thanks in advance to all who reply
as benny hill once said as robin hood, when asked why he only robbed from the rich: "because the poor don't have the money". as for lawyers, there's pro bono, which basically means working for free. law schools sometimes hook up their students who want the practice with doing so.
Like themnax said, law school clinics often offer free legal services to poor people. There's also community legal clinics that offer free services. Contingency fee just means that a lawyer gets paid a chunk of your settlement if you win your case. You'd have to counter-sue for something to be eligible for that. The free clinics often offer the best services. 211 (calling or visiting www.211.org, for the US or Canada) might be a way to connect with these services, though also an online search for free legal services.
Not necessarily. In most cases, no one is going to bother suing a poor person, because they don't have any money. A rich person is probably not going to waste their money suing a poor person, especially if there is a risk of a counter-suit. Someone may be threatening a suit, or may actually intend to follow through with a suit, but if a claim lacks merit, free legal services should be adequate to repel the attack.
In small claims court, if the person you sue can not or does not pay, THEN you have to go in front of a judge to request an order for the sheriff to seize the defendant's property as collateral. And the claimant has to pay all the fees involved in this process. If the collateral is sold at auction, then the claimant will get the money. It's a LOT of work for not very much return.
