LSC Statutes

Legal Service Corporation (LSC) grantees are governed by the provisions of the Legal Services Corporation Act of 1974 as amended in 1977, and annual LSC appropriations acts. The original LSC Act was enacted in 1974 and amended in 1977. The LSC Act authorization for funding expired in 1980, but Congress has agreed to appropriate funds for LSC each year since, subject to a variety of riders that have been attached to the appropriations acts. LSC programs are currently governed by appropriations riders originally enacted in April 1996, which have been reenacted, with some minor adjustments and additions, as part of each subsequent annual appropriations act.

LSC Restrictions

Beginning with the LSC appropriations riders that were enacted in April of 1996, LSC-funded programs were subject to a wide range of new restrictions and requirements that limited the kinds of legal services that could be provided to eligible clients, imposed new procedures and requirements on recipients and prohibited representation of several categories of clients. Follow this link for a summary of what can and cannot be done by LSC recipients (richtext, 31 Kb) under the riders.

LSC Regulations

Since 1976, LSC has also promulgated a series of implementing regulations that govern the activities of recipients. These regulations have been periodically revised and new parts have been added over the years. More information is available at the LSC website about the revisions to the regulations.

Please contact Linda Perle for more details on developments regarding regulatory revisions.

LSC Rulemaking Protocol

In 2002, LSC adopted a new protocol to govern the process of developing and adopting new regulations and revisions to current rules. This protocol is patterned on the negotiated rulemaking procedures that are in use in many federal agencies, although it was adapted to fit within the LSC framework. Through negotiations with the LSC Board and staff, NLADA was instrumental in shaping the protocol to ensure that it provided opportunities for significant input into the development and consideration of new and revised regulations by representatives of the LSC-funded legal services programs.

OLA Opinions

The LSC Office of Legal Affairs (OLA), formerly the Office of General Counsel (OGC), periodically issues external opinions on a variety of regulatory and statutory interpretations. These opinions are generally written in response to specific inquiries from LSC recipients and others regarding LSC's interpretation of the governing statutes and regulations. Since 1998, most of the opinions issued by OLA have been available electronically from LSC. Please contact Linda Perle for copies of earlier opinions.

LSC Program Letters

In addition to the LSC Act, appropriations acts, regulations and OLA opinions, over the years LSC has issued a series of Program Letters that set out LSC's interpretations of grantee requirements and statements of LSC policies on a wide range of issues. NLADA has, whenever possible, worked with the LSC staff in the development of these program letters and the underlying policies, to ensure that they are consistent with statutory and regulatory requirements and not unduly burdensome on LSC grantees. Follow this link for a list of recent LSC Program Letters.

Case Service Reports (CSR)

Since the early 1980s, LSC has collected information regarding pending and closed cases through annual grant activity reports and the Case Service Reporting system (CSR). Although the CSR system was virtually ignored by LSC for many years, Congress has increased its attention to the CSR system and the statistics generated by the information that LSC grantees have submitted. LSC issued a revised Case Service Report Handbook, effective January 1, 2008. Previously, the CSR Handbook was revised in 1999 and 2001.

Access to Records Procedures

As part of its auditing and compliance function, LSC often seeks information from recipients about their clients and cases that may be protected from disclosure by the attorney-client privilege or the rules of professional responsibility. Over the course of the last several years a number of disputes have arisen between LSC and recipients regarding whether LSC had the authority to access particular records. Although most of these disputes were settled as a result of negotiation between LSC and the recipient, a few have involved litigation or threatened litigation before they were resolved. The Office of Inspector General has indicated that it does not consider itself bound by the procedures that were issued by LSC.

Matters Service Reporting System

The CSR system only collects information on a narrowly defined category of activities that fit within the CSR Handbook definition of "case." LSC recipients engage in a wide range of non-case activities that provide significant service to the low-income community, including community legal education and pro-se assistance, referrals, and outreach. In recognition, since July 1, 2001 LSC has imposed on its recipients a data collection effort to gather limited information on non-case activities, called the "Matters Service Reporting System." LSC has issued Guidelines for Data Collection and Reporting for Matters Service Reports.

Freedom of Information Act

LSC is subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Part 1602 of the LSC Regulations governs the FOIA process. LSC has also published a FOIA Handbook to guide members of the public through the process of requesting information under the FOIA.

LSC Audit Guide

Under Section 1009(c) of the LSC Act, LSC must either conduct or require each recipient of LSC funds to provide for an annual financial audit. In 1995 LSC promulgated an Audit Guide for LSC recipients that lays out the specific requirements for an acceptable LSC audit. The Audit Guide has been periodically updated through the use of audit bulletins. The Compliance Supplement provides guidance to auditors on how to check for compliance with LSC regulations.

Accounting Guide for LSC Recipients

The LSC Accounting Guide sets out financial accounting and reporting standards for recipients of LSC funds, and describes accounting policies, records and internal control procedures that LSC believes are necessary to ensure the integrity of accounting, reporting and financial systems. The Accounting Guide is to be used in conjunction with the LSC Audit Guide.

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