NY Courts Split Keeps Legal Aid Attorneys Unsure of Pay for Work

Calls for the New York high court to finally end a long-time New York state circuit split—over when and whether legal aid attorneys representing low-income New Yorkers can be paid by the state—were bolstered by a new Manhattan appellate court opinion.

The ruling from the court earlier this month said that, in certain cases, attorneys’ fees should be awarded to plaintiffs who “prevail” in lawsuits against state agencies, even if a judge hasn’t rendered a decision on the merits of the case.

Without this permission, legal aid attorneys whose pay has often not kept up with inflation or private practice ...