There is a bill currently in the Senate that would impose a tax on legal services. If passed, this could impact your access to legal help when you really need it and cost you more!
Let’s face it, people generally only need legal help when they have a big problems that seriously impact their financial situation and ability to provide food, shelter and education for their families. Taxing legal services in these instances will place a further financial strain on those who can least afford it. It will also serve to stifle access to legal services.
- For
many, hiring a lawyer is a necessity and not a luxury item, as effective
legal representation requires counsel.
- Access
to justice is a basic constitutional right and justice should not be
treated as a commodity.
- Legal
representation is needed most by those with lower and moderate incomes,
including seniors on fixed incomes. For instance, representation is often
necessary to: obtain
workers' compensation or Social Security benefits wrongly denied, fight a
property assessment by local government,
deal with a hostile landlord or
tenant, have
a simple will written or probate a will,
avoid a home foreclosure
Everyone should call and write to their state senator and representatives! Tell them to oppose this bill!
Bellow is a sample of the letter you could send. Please take action!
Dear Senator [Last Name]:
I am writing as an
attorney from [town and county] and a member of
the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) to ask that you vote against Senate Bill
76. This bill would impose a sales tax on most legal services and create a
major financial barrier for individuals with lower and moderate incomes who
need legal representation the most.
For many
Pennsylvanians, hiring a lawyer is a necessity and not a luxury item. Access to
justice is a basic constitutional right that should not be taxed and treated as
a commodity. Increasing the cost of effective legal representation by imposing
a sales tax would impact persons of limited means who often need a lawyer to:
·
obtain
workers’ compensation or social security benefits that have been wrongly denied
·
fight
a property assessment action by their local government
·
deal
with a hostile landlord or tenant
·
have
a simple will written or probate the will
of a loved one
·
avoid
a home foreclosure
I understand the
difficult fiscal problems that the Commonwealth is now facing, but a tax on
legal services is not the proper fix. This financial burden should not be
shifted to individuals who are truly in need of legal representation. Please
join me and the PBA in opposing this legislation.
Respectfully,
[Your name]
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