The Role of Paralegals in the Community Justice Movement
By The New Frontline of Legal Helpers
As you sit in your car outside the courthouse, your hands tighten around the steering wheel. You know you need to file for temporary guardianship of your aging father — his memory is slipping, and he’s no longer able to manage his medical appointments or pay his bills. But as you glance down at the list of requirements you hastily scribbled from an online search, the process feels impossible.
Do you need a lawyer? You know you don’t have the funds for that. So, what now? Where do you even get the right forms? How long does it take? Questions swirl in your mind as the urgency of the situation presses down on you. The bank won’t let you access his accounts, the doctors won’t share his medical information, and without legal authority, you can’t make decisions on his behalf. You take a deep breath, feeling the weight of responsibility settle over you. You need help, but you don’t know where to turn.
Now, imagine someone standing beside you — not a lawyer you can’t afford, but a community justice worker, ready to help. They don’t just hand you a stack of paperwork and send you on your way. Instead, they sit with you and patiently walk through the process step by step. They help you gather the necessary documents, explain what the court will expect, and guide you in filling out the forms correctly. They connect you with local resources — perhaps a low-cost medical evaluation for your father or a financial advisor who can help navigate his accounts.
With their support, the overwhelming process suddenly feels manageable. You’re no longer lost in legal jargon or afraid of making a costly mistake. Instead, you have a clear path forward. This isn’t a dream — it’s happening nationwide as states recognize the power of community justice workers in bridging the justice gap. And for paralegals passionate about social justice, it’s opening doors to new, impactful careers where they can provide life-changing assistance to those in need.
The Severity of the Justice Crisis
The legal system is shutting out millions of Americans who are unable to find meaningful legal help. According to the Legal Services Corporation’s 2022 Justice Gap Report, a staggering 92% of low-income Americans receive little to no legal assistance for their civil legal issues. To put it plainly, that means only 8% of those in need are getting help. Additionally, the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) population, which includes working individuals who struggle to afford basic necessities, continues to grow. In states like North Carolina, an estimated 40% of households fall below the ALICE threshold, meaning they cannot afford legal services when needed.
Despite the increasing demand, the capacity of legal aid organizations remains critically limited. In 2021, LSC-funded legal aid organizations were unable to provide any or enough legal help for an estimated 1.4 million legal problems, turning away half of the eligible issues brought to them due to insufficient resources. This means that even those who qualify for assistance often cannot receive help, which further exacerbates the justice crisis. The numbers make it clear that a more scalable and accessible model for legal support, such as community justice workers, is urgently needed to help Americans access their own legal system.
What is a Community Justice Worker?
The justice system has long been a fortress, its towering walls built of legalese, complex procedures, and financial barriers. Community justice workers are trained legal advocates— often embedded in nonprofits, libraries, shelters, or advocacy organizations — who help people navigate non-criminal legal issues. They provide hands-on assistance with issues such as guardianship in situations like the one described above or other areas like eviction defense, public benefits applications, and protective orders, offering a human-centered, accessible approach to legal help.
Unlike traditional legal professionals, community justice workers are not generalists. After completing law school and passing the bar exam, attorneys can practice in any area of law without being required to specialize. In contrast, community justice workers receive focused training in specific legal areas, ensuring they provide targeted assistance where it is most needed. Several states have carved out exceptions to unauthorized practice of law (UPL) rules to allow community justice workers to provide specific types of legal assistance, recognizing the urgent need to expand access to justice. Inspired by the success of community health workers in health care, this model ensures that underserved populations receive timely legal help before issues escalate into crises.
Frontline Justice: Building a National Movement
Frontline Justice, a national initiative leading this effort, imagines a future where everyone can access timely and effective legal help. To achieve this, Frontline Justice, in partnership with Ascendium Education and Education Design Lab, has launched a National Task Force on Community Justice Work, bringing together legal professionals, policymakers, and frontline advocates. In parallel, this coalition is working to establish training frameworks, credentialing pathways, and regulatory recommendations that will formalize the role of community justice workers and ensure quality training, professional recognition, and ethical guidelines.
Additionally, Frontline Justice hosts monthly Community Cafés, where justice workers from across the country convene to share insights, discuss best practices, and strengthen collaboration. These gatherings provide a space for ongoing professional development and help build a cohesive national network of community justice workers.
Where Do Paralegals Fit In?
Paralegals are already embedded in the places where community justice work happens — tenant advocacy programs, domestic violence shelters, reentry initiatives, and immigration clinics. They’re drafting documents, navigating legal systems, and guiding people through complex processes. That puts them in a strong position to take on an even greater role in closing the justice gap.
Expanding pathways for alternative legal assistance — through community justice worker roles in eviction defense, benefits advocacy, consumer protection — creates more entry points for people who want to do this work. But to make that expansion meaningful, training and credentialing programs need to be practical, affordable, and accessible, ensuring that a diverse range of professionals can step into these roles.
Community justice work offers a lower-barrier, high-impact path. Instead of requiring years of schooling and costly licensing exams, many justice worker programs focus on specialized training in housing law, family court navigation, administrative appeals — the areas where communities need help the most. For paralegals who want to do more, this is a way to use their skills in a way that matters.
States Leading the Way
As of March 4, 2025, nine states — Alaska, Arizona, Delaware, Hawaii, Minnesota, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington — have passed or proposed rules for authorizing justice worker programs, and many more are actively developing them. For a deeper dive into state reforms and the future of justice reform, we invite you to read The Justice Crisis: A Blueprint for How Community Justice Workers Can Help Fix It, a briefing document to the National Task Force on Community Justice Workers at its launch on January 16, 2025, that outlines key insights, policy recommendations, and strategic frameworks aimed at addressing the justice gap and fostering a more inclusive legal system. You can access the full report here: The Justice Crisis: A Blueprint for How Community Justice Workers Can Help Fix It.
A Movement Rooted in Access, Not Exclusivity
Legal aid has long struggled with the reality that for every person served, many more are turned away due to capacity constraints. The justice worker model doesn’t replace lawyers but, instead, expands the ecosystem of legal support. Paralegals, already well-versed in legal systems, can become justice workers to ensure that the most vulnerable receive the help they need.
The Future of Legal Access
In 2024, the North Carolina Equal Access to Justice Commission invited Nikole Nelson, CEO of Frontline Justice, and Matthew Burnett, a co-founder of the organization, to discuss the role of community justice work. State leaders expressed interest in how other states are implementing these models, signaling an openness to further exploration. Frontline Justice aims to build on that momentum, collaborating with local partners to adapt proven approaches in a way that meets North Carolina’s unique needs.
North Carolina has an opportunity to join the growing movement to expand community justice work, creating pathways for trained legal advocates to provide targeted legal support where it’s needed most. Other states have shown what’s possible, and with the right partnerships and policy changes, North Carolina can do the same. Paralegals, in particular, are well-positioned to help drive this effort — bringing their expertise, experience, and deep commitment to access to justice. As conversations continue, we encourage leaders, advocates, and legal professionals to stay engaged — whether by participating in upcoming public comment periods or working to shape policies that make justice accessible. The momentum is building, and this is the time to help shape what comes next.
As the movement grows, the question is no longer if community justice workers will be part of the legal landscape but how we ensure they are trained, supported, and integrated into a holistic access-to-justice framework. And for those passionate about law and social change, this is just the beginning.
Dr. Alicia Mitchell-Mercer is the Chief Operations Officer at Frontline Justice. With over 20 years in the legal field and a decade in project management, she began her career as a paralegal (2004-2012) before transitioning into project management, ultimately serving as Director of Project Management at Lex Project Management Consulting Group. She has worked with corporate legal departments, state agencies, and litigation firms to streamline operations and improve efficiency. She also serves as a FINRA securities arbitrator.
Alicia holds a Doctorate of Public Administration, with a dissertation focused on public policy, civil access to justice, and regulatory reform, as well as a Master of Science in Project Management. She is certified by the NC and SC State Bars, NALA, and NFPA and holds PMP, CSM, and LPP credentials in project management. She has served on multiple North Carolina Bar Association and State Bar committees and is a commission member of the NC Equal Access to Justice Commission (2024-2026).
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