What is Legal Aid?
In Tennessee, there are four legal aid agencies that give free legal help for certain kinds of cases to people who cannot afford a lawyer.
Find Legal Resources
If you need help with your civil legal problem you can find information here. On this page you will find links to resources that may have information that to help you with your legal questions. There are organizations and projects that can help Tennesseans all across the state. Below you can learn about legal aid, free online legal resources, and free legal helplines.
Legal Aid Organizations
If you want a lawyer and can't pay for one, you might qualify to get help from a Legal Aid office. There are four Legal Aid agencies in Tennessee that give free legal help for certain kinds of cases to people who can't afford a lawyer. Use the table below to learn more about Legal Aid's services.
Who Qualifies for Legal Aid?
You may qualify for free legal help if you are a low-income household, and your legal problem is about:
- Problems with your landlord
- Food stamps (SNAP)
- Families First (Welfare or TANF)
- TennCare (Medicare)
- Family problems related to domestic violence
- Some other kinds of cases
How Do I Know if I Qualify?
Call a legal aid office near you. We will ask you questions about your income and the income of other people who live in your home. To qualify, your income must be under the current poverty guidelines. Your case must also be the kind of case we can help with.
What if Legal Aid does not Help with my Kind of Case?
Legal Aid does not help with every kind of case. For example, we cannot help with criminal cases or fee-generating cases, like car accidents where you want to make the other person pay for your injuries or the damage to your car.
There are other organizations and resources that might be able to help. You can learn more about them following these questions.
Is Legal Aid Free?
We do not charge for our legal help. But you may have to pay court costs and for other things, such as, copies of records and court reporters.
Note: Legal Aid does not have enough money to help everyone with every legal problem.
How to Find a Legal Aid Office:
To find a legal aid office near you, click on your county on the MAP of Tennessee counties.
Legal Clinics
Legal aid agencies also have legal clinics with lawyers who may be able to answer your questions and help you. Find information on legal clinics by contacting your local legal aid office. Click here to see a map where you can click on your county and find your legal aid office.
You can also find information on upcoming legal clinics here.
Other Organizations Where You May Find Help
There are organizations where you might be able to get help if Legal Aid can't help you. These agencies and non-profits across Tennessee can provide legal services to their clients at no charge. Many of these groups provide services for issue specific legal problems, or serve a specific population in Tennessee, others are more general. Read more below!
Tennessee Justice Center
Tennessee Justice Center helps Tennesseans one-by-one and then takes what they learn from their stories to advocate for large-scale changes that help others in the same boat. In addition to helping individuals, they use the law and advocacy to ensure that Tennesseans can meet their most basic needs and have a pathway to opportunity.
Click here to learn more.
Disability Rights Tennessee
Disability Rights Tennessee is committed to promoting and preserving the disability rights movement in Tennessee.
DRT focuses its work in the following strategic areas: Freedom from Harm, Freedom from Discrimination, and Freedom to Participate in the Community. Each strategic area promotes the values set forth in the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (DD Act), which created the Protection & Advocacy System:
- Disability is a natural part of the human experience
- Disability does not diminish the right to live independently or to exert control and choice in life
Click here to learn more.
Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition
The Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) is a statewide, immigrant and refugee-led collaboration. Our mission is to build power, amplify our voices, and organize communities to advocate for our rights. Our vision is a stronger, more inclusive Tennessee where people of all nationalities, immigration statuses, and racial identities can belong and thrive.
Click here to learn more.
Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence
The mission of the Coalition is to end domestic and sexual violence in the lives of Tennesseans and to change societal attitudes and institutions that promote and condone violence, through public policy advocacy, education and activities that increase the capacity of programs and communities to address such violence.
Click here to learn more.
Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors
Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors provides free or low cost, compassionate immigration services to immigrants, educates the public and faith-based communities about issues related to immigration, and advocates for immigrant rights. During their legal clinic appointments, they conduct intake, evaluate immigration and other relevant history, and advise of any available options to change immigration status. Where a form of humanitarian relief is available, they provide direct representation as capacity allows.
Click here to learn more.
Volunteer Lawyers and Professionals for the Arts
The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville connects artists and arts organizations with the education, resources, and opportunities they need to thrive from their creative endeavors. To this end, the Arts & Business Council provides pro bono legal and business services to income-qualified artists and creative entrepreneurs of all disciplines, as well as emerging nonprofit arts organizations, through Volunteer Lawyers & Professionals for the Arts (VLPA).
Click here to learn more.
Community Legal Center
Community Legal Center is a non-profit organization providing legal services to those with limited means.
Click here to learn more.
Other Resources
Legal Wellness Checkup
The Legal Wellness Checkup is not legal advice but can help you learn your rights and figure out how to get legal help when you need it. It is free to take the Legal Wellness Checkup. The Legal Wellness Checkup is made for people who live in Tennessee.
Click here to take your Legal Wellness Checkup.
Lawyer Referral Services
Sometimes the best way to find a lawyer is to ask someone you know to recommend a lawyer.
You can also contact a Lawyer Referral Service through your local bar association. Click on the link for a bar association in your area. Ask for their lawyer referral service.
- Memphis Bar Association
- Nashville Bar Association Or call: (615) 242-6546
- Chattanooga Bar Association
- Knoxville Bar Association Or call (865) 522-7501, M-F, 9 – 12 and 1 - 4 p.m.
The Legal Wellness Checkup is not legal advice but can help you learn your rights and figure out how to get legal help when you need it. It is free to take the Legal Wellness Checkup. The Legal Wellness Checkup is made for people who live in Tennessee.