Sign In
Free Newsletter
Recent Articles from Joe Surkiewicz
Joe Surkiewicz: Helping victims in prosperous Howard County
Howard County has an image problem: It’s too affluent — not a place most people associate with rape and domestic violence.
Joe Surkiewicz: Alternative Directions points former inmates toward new lives
Thousands of people leave Maryland’s prisons each year with little more than $50 and a bus ticket. Where do they go?
Joe Surkiewicz: Good news, for a change
Good news doesn’t come very often for low-income people and the community of advocates working to help them survive.
Joe Surkiewicz: MLSC to honor leaders in civil legal services
Every year, the Maryland Legal Services Corp. recognizes the contributions of the legal professionals who strive to ensure justice for the least fortunate among us. For 2014, the awardees come from the judiciary, legal services providers, and a private law firm.
Joe Surkiewicz: MSPB finds lawyers for invisible populations
The Eastern Shore of Maryland consists of nine rural and bucolic counties and is home to less than one percent of the state’s lawyers. Yet the demand for civil legal services to help low-income people is high, especially with the recession and high unemployment.
Joe Surkiewicz: Lawyer wants to change how you view the homeless
Michael A. Brown, a principal in Miles & Stockbridge’s manufacturing and distribution practice in Baltimore, would like to change your views about homelessness.
Joe Surkiewicz: Harford Bar Foundation doing more with less
Caught between a rock and a hard place — a growing need for civil legal help and declining resources — the Harford County Bar Foundation is looking to the community for support of its legal referral and reduced-fee programs.
Joe Surkiewicz: Turning eyesores into assets with urban agriculture
Want to start farming in Baltimore? Don’t laugh — urban agriculture is big. But anyone hoping to start cultivating crops in the city should talk to a lawyer first.
Joe Surkiewicz: In Southern Maryland, doing more with less
For victims of domestic violence in Southern Maryland, it’s a lifeline. The Southern Maryland Center for Family Advocacy helps and supports victims, almost exclusively women, many of whom have been repeatedly assaulted, raped and emotionally abused by their partners.
Joe Surkiewicz: Don’t forget, help out the vet
A 62-year-old Army veteran living in a Baltimore homeless shelter is now getting a Veterans Administration pension and disability benefits — with the predictable result that he’s no longer homeless.
Joe Surkiewicz: BNI celebrates two anniversaries
How best to celebrate 55 years of providing equal opportunity for people to live where they choose?
Joe Surkiewicz: Voices for Civil Justice raise profile of civil legal aid
If there’s one thing that people who work in civil legal aid know for sure, it’s that they don’t get any respect. It’s not because of what they do by helping clients get justice. It’s just that outside the legal profession, not many people know anything about civil legal aid.
