Along with 34 others, I recently joined the new Rural Justice Initiative Committee formed by Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert to address a lack of rural attorneys in Kansas. Appointments also included representatives from all three branches of state government, attorneys, and other community leaders.
In real estate, business formation, mergers, acquisitions, taxes, personnel, contracts, business litigation, etc., attorneys are vitally important for commerce in Kansas. Though a lot of legal services can be performed remotely, attorneys being engaged in business communities and understanding local economies means better representation.
The decreasing number of rural attorneys is alarming. As Luckart pointed out, with no one to take over their practices, rural attorneys often work well beyond retirement age as a result. The ratio of active attorneys to population is two for every 535 residents in Kansas’ urban areas and one for every 808 residents in rural areas. Hodgeman and Wichita counties have no attorneys. Five counties have one attorney and 11 others have only two.
This creates a real inequality for rural Kansans. In some cases, their only options are to go to court without representation or hire an expensive attorney from outside their county, which can often result in more continuances.
To help address these issues, over the next 18 months, the committee will study general population trends and unmet legal needs related to population density as well as trends related to attorneys and other legal professionals who support court and court-adjacent programs.
With those findings, members of the committee will help identify, recruit, and retain legal professionals for rural communities. Recommendations submitted to the Supreme Court at the end of the 18-month study may include changes to laws and/or rules and regulations to improve rural Kansans’ access to legal services.
Prospective lawyers reading this should note that professional opportunities in rural Kansas are endless. We at the Kansas Chamber and our members support this important project and thank my fellow committee members in advance for all the work they will do.
