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WASHINGTON – More than 160 law school deans sent a letter to Congressional leaders on Thursday, March 23, urging support for the ��è��Ƶ (��è��Ƶ). ��è��Ƶ is a nonprofit corporation funded by Congress that promotes equal access to justice and provides grants for high-quality civil legal assistance to low-income Americans.

The signatories—166 law deans in total—represent a diverse array of law schools, including private and public institutions of all sizes. Their letter to the Chairs of the U.S. House and Senate Committees on Appropriations and the Subcommittees on Commerce, Justice, Science, & Related Agencies follows an earlier letter sent by 25 Catholic law deans to Mick Mulvaney, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, opposing the elimination of ��è��Ƶ.

“��è��Ƶ-funded providers serve millions of low-income Americans who could not otherwise afford legal representation,” the March 23 letter reads. “These providers help people who live in households with annual incomes at or below 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, a category that includes almost one in five Americans. The cases involve some of the most difficult, life-changing circumstances a person can face.”

The letter stresses that funding for legal aid is a wise public investment. Civil legal services for low-income Americans helps end cycles of domestic violence, allows children to more easily leave foster care, and reduces unjust evictions and foreclosures.

“��è��Ƶ has been a success story because it reflects a bipartisan affirmation of who we are as Americans,” the letter concludes. “As the late Justice Antonin Scalia stated in his remarks celebrating the organization’s 40th anniversary, the ��è��Ƶ 'pursues the most fundamental of American ideals,’ for ‘without access to quality representation there is no justice.’”

Read the letter here:

Read the earlier letter from Catholic law school deans: