Module 8
Issue Spotting: When Might a Sexual Assault Victim Need Private Counsel to Navigate the Criminal Justice System?

Building Relationships with the Legal Advocacy Community

Identifying legal issues faced by victim-clients is one hurdle to helping victims, knowing where to refer victims for legal assistance is another hurdle. Victims deserve legal representation by an attorney competent in the subject matter of the issue they are facing. Advocates and agencies should build relationships with the legal community just as advocates should build relationships with the criminal justice community.

Advocates and agencies should seek to build relationships with local:

  • Non-profit legal services organizations that provide civil, criminal, and/or family court representation;
  • State, county, and city bar associations;
  • State domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions that provide legal services;
  • Local attorneys and law offices/firms that have subject matter expertise in issues commonly faced by victims in the community (e.g. immigration law, victims’ rights law, civil rights law).

Advocacy agencies should consider maintaining an internal list of local attorneys who are a) knowledgeable about the subject matter often faced by victim-clients, and b) willing to accept such cases.

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