This includes debt problems, contracts, warranties, repossessions, wage garnishments, discrimination, and counseling on small claims court and bankruptcy procedures. This includes divorce, adoption, custody, support, visitation, guardianship, restraining orders, defense in paternity suits, and modification of decrees. Some offices do not take any dissolution cases unless they are emergencies. This includes Medicaid, Medicare, guardianship defense, and issues involving nursing homes or other types of care facilities. This includes expulsion and suspension from school and other disputes involving schools.
Some programs handle a limited number of cases in the area of immigration law.
A Legal Aid office may not be able to accept a case, even if it is the kind that the office generally handles. There are simply not enough Legal Aid attorneys available to provide good quality assistance to all eligible people. However, in many communities, private attorneys volunteer their time to represent low-income clients at no cost and accept cases that the Legal Aid office is unable to handle. Legal Aid is not allowed to take criminal cases. The court will appoint an attorney to handle a criminal case when the client cannot afford legal help.