Fall behind on your student loans these days and you could end up getting more than hectoring phone calls and threatening letters. Some lenders are taking more people to court, attorneys say.

Equal justice under law. That is the lofty motto inscribed over the marble columns of the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. It is not a goal, or an ideal. It is a promise. The words come straight from the Constitution. We put our hands over our hearts and pledge allegiance to a land with justice for all.

The recently released 2015 Washington State Civil Legal Needs Study Update reveals a sharp increase in the average number of civil legal problems facing low-income people – from 3 to more than 9 per year – since the original 2003 Supreme Court study. The statewide survey of more than 1,600 households also shows that less than one quarter of those experiencing these problems receive any help, this as the number of Washington's poorest residents eligible for civil legal aid has risen to 1.25 million, a 40% increase since 2003. Communities of color – and especially children of color – suffer disproportionately as poverty rates for African Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos are essentially double the statewide rate. Other groups experiencing higher than average legal problems include disabled persons, unemployed persons, and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.

YAKIMA, Wash. — Justice can come slowly. In this case it has taken nearly a century. It is the story of treaty rights, Washington state’s belated efforts to correct wrongs and an 81-year-old Yakama man who sought for years to vacate his great-uncle’s 1917 conviction for illegally fishing.

There’s a justice gap in Washington state, according to a study published Thursday. It says that low-income Washington residents face multiple civil legal problems, but few can afford the help they need.

Why dozens of ‘vent kids’ stuck in Washington hospitals can’t go home by Levi Pulkkinen, The Seattle PI, 10/14/2015
Suit filed over inadequate state heath care for sick children by Mark Miller, Komo News, 10/12/2015
Northwest Justice Project lawsuit addresses state’s lack of in-home nurses for children by Adam Lynn, The News Tribune 10/11/2015
Disabled Children Sue Health Care Authority Seeking Skilled Nursing Services by Northwest Justice Project, 10/02/2015
 

An advocacy group for low-income people has sued the state of Washington, contending it has not done enough to provide care for profoundly sick babies, many of whom are languishing in institutions instead of being home with their parents.  

After four years of fighting to prevent foreclosure of his farm, Larkin Stentz managed to do what many others have failed to – keep his land.

Washington state’s approach to workplace safety illustrates how death rates drop sharply when oversight covers every farm, no matter how small.