The LSI Foundation Donates Translation Services to Help Increase Access to Justice

Jan. 19, 2012 - PRLog -- The LSI Foundation, a nonprofit affiliate of Linguistic Systems, Inc., a leading provider of language translation services located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, announced that in 2011 it provided $59,125 of pro bono translation services to Pro Bono Net, a nonprofit leader in innovative programs that increase access to justice.  The LSI Foundation translated documents and information to be used online from English into Hmong, Burmese, Khmer, Korean, and Spanish; other translations including Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Russian are pending.

The translation services donated by the LSI Foundation enhance Pro Bono Net’s efforts to increase the availability of legal information and self-help tools in multiple languages to the millions of Americans who face civil legal problems each year but who can’t afford an attorney.  Language barriers intensify the challenge for those seeking legal assistance while struggling to address issues such as immigration, eviction, foreclosure, child custody and domestic violence.

Specific Pro Bono Net projects that are benefiting from the LSI Foundation’s donated translation services include LawHelp.org, a national online source of referrals to legal aid programs, information about common civil legal issues, and access to self-help tools; LawHelp Interactive, an online legal document assembly service that enables those without access to an attorney to more easily address civil legal issues on their own; and CitizenshipWorks, which provides easy-to-use online tools to help immigrants navigate the naturalization process.

Martin Roberts, President of LSI, stated, “The LSI Foundation is happy to partner with Pro Bono Net to make this contribution and continue to support vitally needed legal assistance for immigrants who face so much difficulty in adjusting to a strange new environment.”

“With almost 25 million people in the U.S. with limited proficiency in English, there is a significant need for multilingual legal services,” said Claudia Johnson, LawHelp Interactive Program Manager at Pro Bono Net.  “By translating key information for online tools, the LSI Foundation is helping increase the level of assistance that courts and legal aid groups can provide to a large number of people for whom language is a barrier. For those without lawyers, being able to understand and complete the necessary legal forms in their native language and then print them out in English is a huge step forward.”

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About Pro Bono Net: Pro Bono Net is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing access to justice through innovative uses of technology and increased volunteer lawyer participation. Pro Bono Net uses innovative web-based platforms—www.probono.net, www.lawhelp.org, and www.lawhelpinteractive.org—to recruit and support volunteer lawyers and provide direct information and tools for self-representation to low-income communities. Pro Bono Net has also developed Pro Bono Manager, pro bono practice management software that helps AmLaw 200 law firms increase pro bono participation, manage pro bono caseloads more efficiently, and raise internal and external awareness of pro bono efforts. For more information, please visit http://www.probono.net.