King County Law Library

CLEAR (Coordinated Legal Education, Advice and Referral) is a toll-free legal hotline for people with low incomes. https://nwjustice.org/apply-online In King County call: 2-1-1 Outside of King County, call: 1 (888) 201-1014

http://www.dadsamerica.org/WA/wa.htm (253) 661-8831

In a typical year, the Division of Child Support (DCS) helps more than 360,000 children and collects approximately $680 million in child support. https://www.dshs.wa.gov/esa/division-child-support 1 (800) 442-5437

The Eastside Legal Assistance Program (ELAP) provides high-quality, no-cost civil legal aid to low-income residents of East, Northeast, and Southeast King County, Washington. We also provide legal aid to survivors of domestic violence throughout all of King County. https://www.elap.org  425.747.7274 425.620.2778 (español)

The Family Law Facilitator Program at King County Superior Court provides information and referrals to family law litigants who are not represented by attorneys. Litigants may meet with a facilitator on a walk-in basis (walk-ins are first come, first served, and sign-in will end 30 minutes prior to closing or once capacity is reached) or by pre-scheduled appointment (for document review or if an interpreter is required) https://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/superior-court/family/facilitator.aspx (206) 263-3542

The mission of the Family Support Division of the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office is to promote family self-sufficiency and the well-being of children. https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/prosecutor/child-support.aspx Seattle: (206) 296-9020 Kent: (206) 296-9595

The King County Bar Association Family Law Mentor Program assists King County residents who are low-income married or unmarried parents with contested family law cases (dissolution, petition to establish a parenting plan, or paternity cases) where children are at risk. https://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Free-Legal-Assistance/Family-Law-Mentor-Program  

The mission of the Kinship Care Solutions Project is to ensure that children who are at risk in the care of their parents have safe, stable homes through custody with caring relatives and other caregivers. https://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Free-Legal-Assistance/Kinship-Care-Solutions (206) 267-7086

The purpose of the Neighborhood Legal Clinics program (NLC) is to offer free, limited legal advice and referrals to King County residents and Washington State residents with legal issues in King County who might otherwise have no access to the legal system. It is a goal of the program to make the clinics accessible regardless of barriers such as income, education, language or disability. Provide FREE 30 minute consultations with an attorney at 34 locations across King County. Attorneys determine whether the client has a legal problem, suggest possible options, and provide appropriate referrals. These attorneys will not represent you in court. NLC attorneys may not have expertise in all areas of the law, but they will make every attempt to answer questions accurately. http://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Free-Legal-Assistance/Neighborhood-Legal-Clinics (206) 267-7070

The mission of the Self Help Plus Program is to provide guidance though a sometimes overwhelming legal system. For those who need legal assistance, but cannot afford expensive retainer fees or the hourly fees attorneys often charge, this program provides a much-needed service. Self Help Plus (SHP) helps low-income people that represent themselves in uncontested family law actions. https://www.kcba.org/For-the-Public/Free-Legal-Assistance/Self-Help-Plus-Program (206) 267-7080

Family Court Services (FCS) offers the following specific services to parents and custodians involved in family law actions:

• Adoption services
• Parenting plan mediations (when ordered or referred by the court)
• Parenting plan evaluations (when ordered or referred by the court)
• Domestic violence assessments (when ordered by the court)
• Becca program assistance related to Truancy, At-Risk Youth, and Child-in-Need-of-Services petitions

https://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/superior-court/family/services.aspx Seattle: (206) 477-1500 Kent: (206) 477-2740  

Over 60+ experienced attorneys specializing in family law offer their services without cost in this court-annexed settlement conference program. Begun in 1997, these attorneys have conducted thousands of settlement conferences, assisting low and low-moderate income families in resolving their cases without the financial and emotional expense of trial. Although there are no formal limitations, this program is intended to serve those for whom it would be a financial hardship to utilize the many fine mediation and arbitration services available in our community. https://www.kingcounty.gov/courts/superior-court/get-help/settlement-conferences/volunteer-settle.aspx For Seattle: Contact Lulu B. Miles, Volunteer Settlement Conference Program Coordinator, at lulu.miles@kingcounty.gov or/and SCVolunteerSettlement@kingcounty.gov or leave a message with name of parties, case number and contact number at (206) 477-1353 to schedule an appointment.  The Volunteer Settlement Conference Program is first come, first serve and a one-time service opportunity.  Please note that when parties agree on a date, this date is set because of limited spacing and cannot be changed. For Kent: Call Cheryl at the Curran Law Firm, P.S., at (253) 852-2345 Monday through Friday (except 1:00pm – 2:00pm).  Curran is the law firm that administers the program for the Maleng Regional Justice Center, donating its office staff and mailing costs.

Legal Voice pursues justice for all women and LGBTQ people in the Northwest, through groundbreaking litigation, legislative advocacy, and legal rights education https://www.legalvoice.org/ (206) 682-9552

What a parenting plan is and how to get one. Learn how to enforce or change a permanent parenting plan. https://www.washingtonlawhelp.org/resource/parenting-plans-court-orders-about-child-cust

Wellspring Family Services is a nonprofit, multi-service agency serving low-income and vulnerable individuals, children and families in Seattle and King County.  For more than 125 years, Wellspring has been a source of opportunity for children and families to win their resilience, triumph over trauma, and reach their full potential. https://wellspringfs.org/ (206) 826-3050

In 2016, more than 2 million people in Washington fell between 200% and 400% of the Federal Poverty Level (poverty guidelines) and were considered of moderate income. This means they probably couldn’t afford a full-fee attorney, yet they did not qualify for free legal aid. The Moderate Means Program (MMP) is a statewide program designed to bridge this gap with attorneys who offer reduced-fee assistance in family, housing, consumer, and unemployment law cases. The program is a partnership between the Washington State Bar Association and the law schools of Gonzaga University, Seattle University, and the University of Washington. https://www.wsba.org/connect-serve/volunteer-opportunities/mmp