The Legal Services Agency of Western Carolina, Inc. will use the $500,000 grant to create the Partners for Justice project. The Partners for Justice project will establish a virtual legal aid office in every county in South Carolina that does not currently have a legal services office. The virtual legal aid offices, which are to be housed in churches, boys’ clubs, victim centers, community centers, and libraries, will offer self-help videos, pro se clinics, and real-time video conferencing between clients and legal aid staff. Partners for Justice will concretely enhance the capability of legal services programs to expand client access, increase inter- and intra-staff collaboration and supplement substantive training opportunities for staff. The result will be an increased number of contacts and referrals of clients. Finally, the technological support provided to the network will ensure the continuing capacity of the system to adapt to technological, legal, and client need.

"Expanding services by giving legal services programs access to the world's latest technology is a very exciting step," said LSC President John McKay. "The legal services community in South Carolina is on the verge of bridging the digital divide."