I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 9018 
To provide for the establishment of the Office for Access to Justice in 
the Department of Justice, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 17, 2020 
Mr. NADLER (for himself and Ms. SCANLON) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To provide for the establishment of the Office for Access 
to Justice in the Department of Justice, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Office for Access to 
Justice Establishment Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 
means the Department of Justice. 
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(2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 
the Director of the Office. 
(3) OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Of-
fice for Access to Justice established under section 
2. 
SEC. 3. OFFICE ESTABLISHMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established within the 
Department, the Office for Access to Justice, which shall 
be headed by a Director, who shall be appointed by the 
Attorney General. 
(b) PERSONNEL AND FUNDS.—The Attorney General 
shall provide to the Office such personnel and funds as 
are necessary to establish and operate the Office as a com-
ponent of the Department. 
(c) ORDER OF REPORTING.—The Director shall re-
port to the Attorney General through the Deputy Attorney 
General and the Associate Attorney General. 
SEC. 4. DUTIES. 
The Director shall— 
(1) serve as legal and policy advisor to the At-
torney General to ensure access to justice for low- 
income and other underrepresented people in the 
criminal and civil justice systems; 
(2) serve as the principal legal advisor for the 
Department on the constitutional right to counsel 
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and the other rights guaranteed under the Sixth 
Amendment to the Constitution of the United 
States; 
(3) serve as the Executive Director of the Legal 
Aid Interagency Roundtable in accordance with sec-
tion 5; 
(4) serve as the liaison and point of contact be-
tween the Department and indigent defense and civil 
legal aid organizations, including Federal public de-
fender organizations, and conduct, along with the 
Office of the Attorney General, the Office of the 
Deputy Attorney General, and the Office of the As-
sociate Attorney General, semi-annual meetings with 
representatives of these organizations to receive 
input and recommendations on how to improve ac-
cess to justice and fulfillment of the right to counsel; 
(5) coordinate with other components and divi-
sions within the Department to ensure each is con-
sidering access to justice and right to counsel in pol-
icy, enforcement, and funding decisions; 
(6) consult with Department grantmaking com-
ponents to ensure funding decisions take into ac-
count access to justice; and 
(7) consult with the Secretary of State and 
serve as the central authority of the executive 
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branch on access to justice before international and 
multilateral organizations. 
SEC. 5. LEGAL AID INTERAGENCY ROUNDTABLE. 
(a) PURPOSE; COMPOSITION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney 
General shall establish a Legal Aid Interagency 
Roundtable, which shall be headed by an Executive 
Director, to raise the awareness of executive branch 
agencies of the ways in which civil legal aid and indi-
gent defense can help advance a wide range of Fed-
eral objectives, including employment, family sta-
bility, housing, consumer protection, health services, 
and public safety. 
(2) COMPOSITION.—The Legal Aid Interagency 
Roundtable s established under paragraph (1) shall 
be composed of representatives of executive branch 
department offices identified by the Executive Direc-
tor of the Legal Aid Roundtable with the consent of 
the Attorney General. 
(3) REQUIREMENT.—The Executive Director of 
the Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable shall convene 
the Roundtable not less frequently than semi-annu-
ally. 
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