Once a year the courts try to be more embracing and less intimidating.
“The public often feels we are standoffish,” said Monica Dingle, assistant deputy chief clerk at the Civil Court on Sutphin Boulevard on Law Day. “This is to tell them that we are here for them, that we are family.”
Every May 1 for the last nine years, the Civil Court has opened its doors to the community in observation of Law Day, a national day established by President Eisenhower in a 1958 proclamation to celebrate the legal system. And to celebrate the law, the court has aimed to showcase not only the services available to the public at the courthouse but also the array of services throughout the borough of Queens.
“Law Day is to really let the community know that we are a user friendly court and to highlight programs and services,” said Jo-Ann Carey, who helps coordinate Law Day for the Honorable Judge Fern Fisher, assistant administrative judge for New York State Courts Access to Justice Program, which is responsible for Law Day across the State. “It’s important to give them information before they come to court because they are in some kind of trouble.”
Some of the available resources to the public include the Community Mediation Services, an informal voluntary process in which a mediator facilitates conversations between disputing parties, used for anything from tenant-landlord to custody disputes. The Queens Bar Association, which provides lawyer referrals and volunteer lawyers and the Office of the Self-represented, a civil court office geared towards helping individuals in private claims who decide not to hire a lawyer.
“We cannot give advice, but we try to see if we can connect them with legal services. We also give forms and help with filings,” said Orestes Rodriguez, supervisor at the Office of the Self-represented. Rodriguez said that his office helps about 60 to 70, mostly indigent, people a day. “With today’s financial situation we are getting a lot of people trying to do things on their own.”
Rodriguez added that he usually advises people to get a lawyer because “there is no substitute for an attorney.”
Maria Castro, who attended Law Day with her daughter, felt positive about the event.
“This is very good because it is important that this type of information gets to the community, like where to go, who to speak to,” said Castro, a resident of Jackson Heights. “Usually the court feels cold and not familiar. This event makes the court more familiar.”
Judge Devin Cohen, a visiting judge from Kings County, agreed.
“The stuff that is here is really here to make it [the court] run effectively for people and to convey to [the] public that, win or lose, they can state their case. That it’s a just and fair process,” Judge Cohen said. “Once in awhile you should visit the doctor when you are not feeling terrible.”
