TALS and the four federally-funded legal aid programs in Tennessee have entered into a contract with the Bureau of TennCare to assist about 300 Medicaid Spend Down enrollees with Qualified Income Trusts (QITs) to enable them to maintain their nursing home, ICF-MR, or HCBS coverage. Enrollees with QITs in place can then qualify for TennCare Medicaid and maintain their coverage.

Enrollees will either call TALS at 1-888-395-9297 or be referred to TALS by TennCare. TALS will then refer these cases to local legal aid programs for intake and representation. Documents and training materials are available in the TALS Document Library (Search on QIT). TALS will hold a "web-based conference call training" on QITs in the coming weeks. Details to be announced.

Toll-Free Disaster Legal Services Hotline TALS is staffing a TOLL-FREE DISASTER LEGAL SERVICES HOTLINE in response to the recent tornadoes across the state. FEMA has created the Hotline and TALS will refer callers to the local legal aid offices as they come in. We are coordinating with the TBA Young Lawyers Division on this project. The TBA is also recruiting volunteer attorneys statewide who will be available to assist local programs with disaster legal services. Download Press Release. Download Flyer.

Hotline Number:
1-877-396-6248
Call M-F 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central Time

President Declares Major Disaster for Tennessee
Legal Assistance for Victims of Recent Storms: Volunteers Needed In response to the recent tornadoes that caused loss of life and severe property damage across Tennessee, TALS and the TN Bar Association are partnering to respond to local disaster legal assistance needs. Currently, we are assessing local needs for assistance and the TBA is recruiting volunteer attorneys to assist in local communities. The legal aid programs in all the effected counties are heavily engaged in local efforts.

Lawyers interested in volunteering can sign-up on the TBA’s website.

Resources that may be helpful to you and your agency:

• President Declares Major Disaster for Tennessee
• TALS Disaster Legal Services Plan (in Doc. Library)
• TN Bar Association Disaster Assistance Manual
• "FEMA "What Does Disaster Declaration Mean to Me" website
• TN Emergency Management Agency
• Federal Emergency Management Agency

Replacing Unfairness with Justice
New Legal Services Director Housepian Sees Pro Bono as a ‘Great Gift’ In the January 2008 edition of the Tennessee Bar Journal, there's a feature article on Gary D. Housepian, the new executive director of the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands (LASMTC), and the three veteran legal service program directors across the state: Harrison D. McIver is executive director of Memphis Area Legal Services (MALS); J. Steven Xanthopoulos leads West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS); and David R. Yoder is head of Legal Aid of East Tennessee (LAET). The directors share their thoughts on some of today’s access to justice issues and, through the lens of hindsight, the results of that state planning process. Excerpted from TBA Journal 2008. Article by Julie Swearingen. Go to TBA Journal
Equal Justice Community Awarded Two Grants from Blue Ribbon Commission A Supreme Court Blue-Ribbon Commission charged with granting funds accrued from CLE fines and fees awarded two grants in November that will benefit the equal justice community in Tennessee. TALS was pleased to be a co-sponsor in both grants:

• TALS was awarded $166,000 from the Supreme Court Blue Ribbon Commission for a two-year project to conduct CLE training sessions aimed at recruiting pro bono volunteers statewide. Working with the four federally-funded Legal Aid programs, these trainings will be held in locations around the state, will focus on law topics of interest to pro bono attorneys, and will also be available online. More details to come.
• The Commission funded a portion of a request to create the Tennessee Loan Repayment Assistance Program. This initial $103,500 grant of matching funds will be available to create a statewide program to assist public interest advocates in repaying outstanding educational loans. Special thanks to longtime legal aid advocate Riney Green for his continued devotion to this program. This matching grant is an important step in bringing this program to fruition.

TALS Has a New Look After several rounds of revisions, TALS has a new logo to unveil. We believe Kristen Beahm of Beahm Design captured what we were seeking to accomplish and provided us with a truly unique visual identity for our organization. The logo (see footer), in addition to being a more stylized identifier for TALS, also represents important parts of our mission:

• Three grand divisions of Tennessee with the three stars
• Our goal to work statewide across Tennessee, with the image of the state
• The half moon arch, which signifies a circular motion -- that we are all constantly in motion to serve our clients.

What is Cy Pres? TALS has recently produced a one-page brochure about Cy Pres. You may now view or download the brochure. Intended for judges, lawyers, mediators, and others who may be in a position to make Cy Pres awards, the brochure has three goals:

• Increase awareness about the unmet civil legal needs in Tennessee;
  
• Illustrate the appropriateness of local legal aid programs, pro bono programs, or the Tennessee Voluntary Fund For Indigent Civil Representation as the recipients of cy pres funds; and
  
• Guide you to where you can get more information about such awards.

To request a small supply of brochures for distribution, email us. Include your contact information, the quantity of brochures you're requesting and the intended use.