A toll-free telephone number 1-800-829-4128 — has been established at The Missouri Bar to receive requests for legal help for storm victims. Callers will be asked to give a brief description of their problem or question as well as a return phone number. Within 48 hours, a volunteer attorney will return the call and provide free legal help.
The volunteer attorneys cannot represent callers in court or accept the caller as a paying client. After talking with a volunteer attorney, callers may be referred to their local Lawyer Referral Service if they decide they would like a lawyer to represent them.
After natural disasters, storm victims typically have many questions about insurance matters, mortgage or rent issues, contracts for repair work, lost legal documents and government financial assistance. “The lawyers of Missouri want to help ensure that storm victims have the legal information and advice they need for rebuilding their lives and communities,” said John S. Johnston, President of The Missouri Bar.
The legal relief for storm victims is a public service project, headed by The Missouri Bar’s Young Lawyer Section with the cooperation of the American Bar Association. More than 140 lawyers throughout Missouri have already volunteered to help storm victims get back on their feet by answering their legal questions and providing legal consultations over the telephone.