The PDX Legal Resource Guide team works to connect community members to free, low-cost, and income-based legal resources in many areas of legal practice.
We provide access to information and legal resources in the Portland, Oregon area. We do not provide legal advice or representation. However, we can provide referrals to organizations or legal professionals that may be able to offer assistance.
Legal Services Day
Help with Court Fines/Fees
The Legal Services Day program accepts 60 low-income applicants per month on a lottery-based system for Oregon residents who owe fines/fees in Multnomah County. Those chosen will get all outstanding court fines and fees paid, including traffic, parking, and criminal fees. This does not include restitution payments or compensatory fees.
Learn about Legal Services Day with Metropolitan Public Defender's Community Law Division.
Senate Bill 819
Effective January 1, 2022, SB 819 is a new law that may benefit Oregonians with felony convictions who wish to petition for a reconsideration of their sentence or conviction. The criteria for eligibility is largely county-specific and based on the participation of each county’s district attorney (not every county’s DA will choose to participate in the bill).
The petitioner may jointly petition the sentencing court for reconsideration of a conviction or sentence if the original sentence “no longer advances the interests of justice” and the conviction is not eligible to be set aside under ORS 137.225 (expunged).
Oregon Win for Disability Rights
The Oregon Supreme Court recently ruled that private entities are subject to state public accommodations laws prohibiting discrimination based on protected class statuses.
Lewis & Clark Law School’s Criminal Justice Reform Clinic run by attorney Aliza Kaplan, partnered with the MacArthur Justice Center to write an amicus brief along with Disability Rights Oregon and the ACLU of Oregon. The brief outlines the, “often deadly harms of the for-profit medical care industry operating in jails and prisons.” Read below.