This 2.0-hour on-demand CLE is comprised of the below streaming video clips of the Breaking Poverty Barriers to Equal Justice presentation. The CLE course code is 279258.

If you have any substantive questions or suggestions about the CLE, please contact heidi.h[email protected]. To claim credit after watching the clips, click here.

Breaking Poverty Barriers to Equal Justice Video Clips

I. Understanding Poverty from an Insider Perspective
Includes: Specific poverty barriers to getting equal justice in the courts. Access to legal services for those in poverty. The importance of legal professionals understanding the experiences of those living in the crisis of poverty. Where most people get their understanding of what it’s like to live in poverty and why that is not a reliable source of information.

1 Poverty Barriers to Justice – Lack of Access to Legal Services………………. 3:17 min
2 Poverty Barriers to Justice – Misunderstanding of Poverty…………………. 12:17 min

II. The Experiences of Those in Poverty in our Society and in our Justice System
Includes: Some facts about poverty in America. How people living in poverty often experience the justice system, including law enforcement. The financial reality of living in poverty and its impact on access to legal services. Four life experiences included in our definition of “poverty” and the different impact of each on access to legal services. How the dynamics of poverty cross race.

3 Daily Realities of Poverty Part 1……………………………………………………….. 8:40 min
4 Daily Realities of Poverty Part 2……………………………………………………….. 7:54 min
5 Criminalization of Poverty Thoughts………………………………………………… 11:54 min
6 Types of Poverty Part 1…………………………………………………………………….. 7:21 min
7 Types of Poverty Part 2…………………………………………………………………… 11:11 min
8 Poverty Crossing Race……………………………………………………………………… 6:19 min

III. How Universal Access to Justice Depends on Legal Professionals Being Able to See and Suspend Judgments of “Other”
Includes: Why it’s common to go to blame and judgment. How judgments cripple effective communication, individual representations and efforts to change systemic barriers to equal justice. Why examining our beliefs about poverty is essential to
understanding who we will want to help and who we will not. “Active listening,” including suspending the tendency to value judge based on our own lived experience.

9 Judging and How to Overcome It………………………………………………………. 7:24 min
10 The Difference between Hearing and Listening………………………………….. 7:41 min

IV. Improving Communication Across Poverty Barriers
Includes: Three levels of self-disclosure, including which is most common for legal professionals, how this can prevent establishing trust with clients from poverty, and how legal professionals can create identification to build trust. Characteristics of oral and print styles of communicating, which is dominant in the legal world, and which is dominant in generational poverty. Specific tools legal professionals can use to better communicate with those for whom oral culture is the dominant style of communicating. How to respond when a client from poverty is sharing information that is not relevant to the legal issue.

11 Building Trust………………………………………………………………………………….. 7:40 min
12 Different Styles of Communicating Part 1…………………………………………. 9:57 min
13 Different Styles of Communicating Part 2…………………………………… 7:52 min

V. Moving People Out of Poverty**

Includes: Five key concepts for legal professionals and courts to better serve people living in poverty.
14 Use Strength-Based Perspective………………………………………………………. 3:10 min
15 Use Resilience Theory……………………………………………………………………… 1:38 min
16 Use Asset Theory…………………………………………………………………………….. 1:33 min
17 Avoid False Attribution Theory………………………………………………………….. 2:09 min
18 Going Beyond…………………………………………………………………………………. 3:52 min

The above videos, distributed nationwide, were created through a unique collaboration of the following organizations: