The Houston Legal Aid Clinic, later known as the Houston Legal Foundation, was established by the Houston Bar Association and Texas Southern University, among others. East Texas Legal Services was created due to local interest from multiple parties, including client groups in Nacogdoches and Tyler, members of the Nacogdoches County Bar Association, and to some degree, the Jefferson County Bar Association. Both programs were created to equalize access to justice for low-income persons who otherwise could not afford an attorney to protect their rights and help meet basic needs.
Over the years, the two legal aid firms expanded their reach, with increasing numbers of counties included in their respective service areas. In the 1960s, the Houston Legal Foundation offered criminal defense for a period in response to the Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright, and the Houston Legal Foundation eventually became known as Gulf Coast Legal Foundation. In the 1990s, East Texas Legal Services created the East Texas Fair Housing Service Center to investigate, address, and monitor corrective actions related to violations of the Fair Housing Act. Throughout this natural evolution, East Texas Legal Services and Gulf Coast Legal Foundation have always remained true to their original purposes.
A 2002 merger was designed to capitalize on each entity’s resources. East Texas Legal Services, a largely rural legal aid program, and the primarily urban Gulf Coast Legal Foundation, along with a portion of Legal Aid of Central Texas, were combined to become Lone Star Legal Aid, as it exists today – the third largest legal aid organization of its type in the United States. LSLA has a proud tradition of successful client-centered work, and historically, the firm has won victories that affect not only the client who initially presented a particular issue, but also groups of low-income people on community, state, and national levels. The firm’s actions have led to systemic policy and procedural changes, like public housing desegregation and health care access for children.
Currently, there are over 2 million eligible Texans living in our 76 County service area. In 2021, we served over 61,000 individuals. We assisted over 4,700 cases for senior citizens and their families, over 1,300 cases for veterans, surviving spouses, and dependents, and over 9,000 cases for individuals and their families with domestic violence related situations.
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Lone Star Legal Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit law firm focused on advocacy for low-income and underserved populations. Lone Star Legal Aid serves millions of people at 125% of federal poverty guidelines that reside in 72 counties in the eastern and Gulf Coast regions of Texas, and 4 counties of Southwest Arkansas. Lone Star Legal Aid focuses its resources on maintaining, enhancing, and protecting income and economic stability; preserving housing; improving outcomes for children; establishing and sustaining family safety and stability, health and well-being; and assisting populations with special vulnerabilities, like those with disabilities, or who are elderly, homeless, or have limited English language skills. Lone Star Legal Aid does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, national origin, ancestry, disability, marital status, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. To learn more about Lone Star Legal Aid, visit our website at https://www.lonestarlegal.org.
Media contact: media@lonestarlegal.org
