If you, or a family member age 60 and older, needs legal services and lives in Monroe County, Mich., you may be able to get assistance from Monroe County Senior Legal Services.

The agency has a page in the community section at the Monroe County Library System web site. It also has been listed in local senior citizen guides and the program has a flier that was distributed at the Monroe County Unemployment Resource Expo on Monday. The office at 1126 S. Telegraph Rd., Monroe, Mich., is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, (734) 241-7644. It also schedules outreach appointments at various senior centers and retirement living facilities throughout the month.

The basic requirements are that the clients are age 60 and older and live in Monroe County, Mich. Priority is given to those in the greatest social or economic need. There is no charge for the services but donations are appreciated. The agency is funded through a variety of foundation funds, federal grants, donations and Commission on Aging funds.

The agency does not handle bankruptcy, driver’s license restoration, criminal cases or civil suits seeking recovery of “significant sums of money.” But it does take on cases such as:

• Garnishments and attachments of wages.
• Problems with sales or contracts.
• Administrative problems such as with Social Security or Medicaid.
• Tenant and landlord issues.
• Family problems including some divorces.
• Financial counseling.

The Women’s Center of Southeastern Michigan, 2425 W. Stadium Blvd., Ann Arbor, is taking appointments for its family legal clinic offered from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday Dec. 19.

Volunteer attorney Alyson Robbins will be available for appointments on adoption, child custody, child support, grandparent visitation and other family law matters.

The cost is $15 with reduced fees available for those who qualify.

Monroe County residents are eligible for Women’s Center services.

To register for the law clinic, call (734) 973-6779. There will be an intake interview at the time of registration.

This service is intended for those who otherwise cannot afford an attorney. Monroe County residents are eligible for Women’s Center services.

If you want to take advantage of this program, you need to make an appointment before Nov. 19 and time slots do fill up fast.

For information, call (734) 973-6779.

The fee is $15 for one session, $25 for both sessions, and reduced fees are available. Women’s Center services are available to Monroe County residents.

To register or for information, call (734) 973-6779.

Monroe County residents are eligible for services from this agency.

The Women’s Center also holds monthly legal clinics, hosts a divorce support group and can arrange confidential meetings with financial experts.

For information about any of its services, call (734) 973-6779.

He wanted to talk to the city editor about the situation to see if The Monroe Evening News would do a story. (I gave him both that editor’s name and one of the reporters I send people to when they want to talk to “your investigative reporter.” Our newspaper doesn’t have an “investigative reporter,” but most things people want “investigated” fall into either business matters or police matters and we have reporters assigned to both of those topics.)

In the meantime, we got to talking about his situation. If he decides to go the fundraiser route, I explained how to get such an event publicized. I also showed him the Monroe on a Budget blog and Julie’s List in hopes there would be resources or ideas he had not yet thought of. He planned to get on the Internet later in the day, based on what he saw on my computer screen.

Generally, as in this case, desperate families have already contacted the most well-known resources and are stalling out.

“But what I need is … ”

If you are in that situation, it will be difficult and exhausting to find the exact resources that will help in your circumstances.

Tonya at What is Normal?, one of my Internet neighbors at BlogsMonroe, has a son with serious medical conditions that is the focus of her blog. Here’s what she did when their family lost their insurance.

I also have a sidebar on Where to get assistance with medical bills.

And if what you need is help with a legal matter, it is in your best interest to keep as detailed records as possible on your case while you look for free or low-cost legal assistance. You’ll need that documentation for a lawyer or legal clinic to prepare a good argument for the judge.

But people get arrested every day in southeast Michigan for things like retail fraud (shoplifting), drunk driving, driving with a suspended license and creating a disturbance. And occasionally, there are people who get arrested on far more serious offenses.

Whether you are “John Six Pack” or a well-known public official, if you have legal proceedings pending, it is wise to take an active role to keep your criminal defense expenses down.

Do you want to spend your hard-earned money on things other than lawyer fees, court costs, fines, lost wages because you were taken to jail, bond money so you can be released from jail, increased vehicle insurance fees because of the final charges, and collect phone calls from jail?

Of course, you do.

Here are some tips:

• Don’t do stupid or illegal things in the first place. There are people in this country whose only court record is a speeding ticket. Their legal fees are minimal!
• If you have done something illegal and are in the process of getting caught, do not aggravate the circumstances. Depending on what a shoplifting suspect does to a store employee, the prosecutor’s office may be considering misdemeanor retail fraud charge — but could also bump it up to a felony robbery charge. And don’t kick out the window in a patrol car like a local criminal suspect recently did. That’s a quick way to see an additional charge written up on your arrest sheet.
• When you meet with your lawyer, ask him or her what could be done to keep your out-of-pocket expenses down. If the lawyer thinks he can get the case dismissed or bargain to a different charge with less penalties, you certainly want to follow any directions that would be helpful in making those arrangements.
• If the judge allows you out of jail on bond as long as you follow a list of rules such as curfew hours or travel restrictions, it is in your best interest to behave accordingly.
• Attend all court hearings as scheduled. If an emergency comes up, contact your probation officer or court officials and discuss the situation with them.
• If your driver’s license is suspended, yes, you will have to find someone else to drive you to court. During my college days, I was asked to drive a friend to a court hearing when one of his traffic charges was suspended license. (He had been ignoring the fact he didn’t have a clear license, until one day when a police officer noticed his car’s license tags had expired … and then realized the license was suspended and there was no insurance on the vehicle. Oh, yes, that was quite an expensive legal mess to clean up.)
• When you go to court for the sentencing hearing, be prepared to handle all arrangements necessary to meet the likely sentence. If you are expecting fines, make sure you have cash in hand or enough money in a bank account to settle out the case. (If you have to borrow money, a little bit of time and research may be needed to find the least expensive way to handle the situation.) And if you are expecting jail time, take care of personal errands before sentencing. You might not get a chance to do them afterward.

The Monroe County Bar Association will host a free legal clinic from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday April 30 at the Monroe County Courthouse, 125 E. Front St.

If you can’t afford an attorney, or don’t know where to start, with legal issues such as divorce, traffic tickets, child support or landlord-tenant disputes, stop by the courthouse during the clinic hours to have a free private consultation with an attorney who is familiar with Michigan law.

Other county agencies and organizations also will be available to help answer questions from the public.

For information or to volunteer, here’s an e-mail link.

But she never checked with an attorney to find out what needed to be done to achieve her goal and how far she could realistically do-it-herself. Instead, she asked a total stranger who was standing in the lobby at the courthouse (me) what she should do. I heard just enough of her story involving a family dispute to realize she absolutely needed a lawyer and told her that! “I can’t afford an attorney,” she said.

If you can’t afford an attorney, there are programs and services that you may qualify for. Julie’s List has a page that details free and low-cost legal aid services that are available in southeast Michigan.

The Monroe County Bar Association is also hosting its Sixth Annual Free Legal Clinic from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday April 30 at the Monroe County Courthouse, 125 E. Second St., Monroe. Local residents will be able to receive a free, private consultation with an attorney. Representatives will be available from several court and law enforcement agencies.

You may be surprised as to how much one meeting with an attorney can help toward settling a dispute, taking care of a lingering situation or sending you in the right direction to do-it-yourself. For example, I was able to settle a legal dispute 10 years ago with a firm letter from my attorney to the other party (which was done for a very small fee).

And if you have a more complicated situation, an initial consultation will provide you with a much better idea of the cost, steps and time involved with settling the matter. That’s a lot better than worrying, guessing … or asking another visitor at the courthouse!