Affording Justice (How the Legal Profession Is Failing America's Middle Class and What to Do About It)

Middle-class Americans know two things about legal practice: law is complicated, and lawyers are expensive. So expensive, in fact, that only large companies and the wealthy can generally afford to hire them—and yet US law is often so complex that ordinary people cannot hope to represent themselves successfully. Sheldon Krantz draws on his long and varied career as a lawyer and scholar to show how the legal system has denied the majority of Americans equal access to justice and offers productive, practical reforms to address the problem. Through case studies and a comprehensive overview of relevant legal policy and practices, Krantz charts the real impacts of the current system’s inadequacies and highlights creative solutions, some that are currently in use and others that should be implemented. Affording Justice is essential reading for anyone concerned about access to justice in today’s America.