[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1515 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1515

    To establish a domestic violence volunteer attorney network to 
                  represent domestic violence victims.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 24, 2007

Mr. Biden (for himself and Mr. Specter) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To establish a domestic violence volunteer attorney network to 
                  represent domestic violence victims.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Domestic Violence Volunteer 
Attorney Network Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the terms ``dating partner'', ``dating violence'', 
``domestic violence'', ``legal assistance'', ``linguistically and 
culturally specific services'', ``stalking'', and ``State domestic 
violence coalitions'' shall have the same meaning given such terms in 
section 3 of the Violence Against Women and Department of Justice 
Reauthorization Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-162).

SEC. 3. NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VOLUNTEER ATTORNEY NETWORK.

    Section 1201 of the Violence Against Women Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 
3796gg-6) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) National Domestic Violence Volunteer Attorney Network.--
            ``(1) In general.--
                    ``(A) Grants.--The Attorney General may award 
                grants to the American Bar Association Commission on 
                Domestic Violence to work in collaboration with the 
                American Bar Association Committee on Pro Bono and 
                Public Service and other organizations to create, 
                recruit lawyers for, and provide training, mentoring, 
                and technical assistance for a National Domestic 
                Violence Volunteer Attorney Network.
                    ``(B) Use of funds.--Funds allocated to the 
                American Bar Association's Commission on Domestic 
                Violence under this subsection shall be used to--
                            ``(i) create and maintain a network to 
                        field and manage inquiries from volunteer 
                        lawyers seeking to represent and assist victims 
                        of domestic violence;
                            ``(ii) solicit lawyers to serve as 
                        volunteer lawyers in the network;
                            ``(iii) retain dedicated staff to support 
                        volunteer attorneys by--
                                    ``(I) providing field technical 
                                assistance inquiries;
                                    ``(II) providing on-going mentoring 
                                and support;
                                    ``(III) collaborating with national 
                                domestic violence legal technical 
                                assistance providers and statewide 
                                legal coordinators and local legal 
                                services programs; and
                                    ``(IV) developing legal education 
                                and other training materials; and
                            ``(iv) maintain a point of contact with the 
                        statewide legal coordinator in each State 
                        regarding coordination of training, mentoring, 
                        and supporting volunteer attorneys representing 
                        victims of domestic violence.
            ``(2) Authorization.--There are authorized to be 
        appropriated to carry out this subsection $2,000,000 for each 
        of the fiscal years 2008 and 2009 and $3,000,000 for each of 
        the fiscal years 2010 through 2013.
            ``(3) Eligibility for other grants.--A receipt of an award 
        under this subsection by the Commission on Domestic Violence of 
        the American Bar Association shall not preclude the Commission 
        from receiving additional grants under the Office on Violence 
        Against Women's Technical Assistance Program to carry out the 
        purposes of that program.
            ``(4) Other conditions.--
                    ``(A) Prohibition on tort litigation.--Funds 
                appropriated for the grant program under this 
                subsection may not be used to fund civil representation 
                in a lawsuit based on a tort claim. This subparagraph 
                shall not be construed as a prohibition on providing 
                assistance to obtain restitution.
                    ``(B) Prohibition on lobbying.--Any funds 
                appropriated under this subsection shall be subject to 
                the prohibitions in section 1913 of title 18, United 
                States Code, relating to lobbying with appropriated 
                moneys.''.

SEC. 4. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VOLUNTEER ATTORNEY REFERRAL PROGRAM.

    (a) Pilot Program.--
            (1) In general.--For fiscal years 2008 and 2009, the Office 
        on Violence Against Women of the Department of Justice, in 
        consultation with the Domestic Violence Legal Advisory Task 
        Force, shall designate 5 States in which to implement the pilot 
        program of the National Domestic Violence Volunteer Attorney 
        Referral Project and distribute funds under this subsection.
            (2) Criteria.--Criteria for selecting the States for the 
        pilot program under this subsection shall include--
                    (A) equitable distribution between urban and rural 
                areas, equitable geographical distribution;
                    (B) States that have a demonstrated capacity to 
                coordinate among local and statewide domestic violence 
                organizations;
                    (C) organizations serving immigrant women; and
                    (D) volunteer legal services offices throughout the 
                State.
            (3) Purpose.--The purpose of the pilot program under this 
        subsection is to--
                    (A) provide for a coordinated system of ensuring 
                that domestic violence victims throughout the pilot 
                States have access to safe, culturally, and 
                linguistically appropriate representation in all legal 
                matters arising as a consequence of the abuse or 
                violence; and
                    (B) support statewide legal coordinators in each 
                State to manage referrals for victims to attorneys and 
                to train attorneys on related domestic violence issues.
            (4) Role of statewide legal coordinator.--A statewide legal 
        coordinator under this subsection shall--
                    (A) be employed by the statewide domestic violence 
                coalition, unless the statewide domestic violence 
                coalition determines that the needs of victims 
                throughout the State would be best served if the 
                coordinator was employed by another statewide 
                organization;
                    (B) develop and maintain an updated database of 
                attorneys throughout the State, including--
                            (i) legal services programs;
                            (ii) volunteer programs;
                            (iii) organizations serving immigrant 
                        women;
                            (iv) law school clinical programs;
                            (v) bar associations;
                            (vi) attorneys in the National Domestic 
                        Violence Volunteer Attorney Network; and
                            (vii) local domestic violence programs;
                    (C) consult and coordinate with existing statewide 
                and local programs including volunteer representation 
                projects or statewide legal services programs;
                    (D) provide referrals to victims who are seeking 
                legal representation in matters arising as a 
                consequence of the abuse or violence;
                    (E) participate in biannual meetings with other 
                Pilot Program grantees, American Bar Association 
                Commission on Domestic Violence, American Bar 
                Association Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service, 
                and national domestic violence legal technical 
                assistance providers;
                    (F) receive referrals of victims seeking legal 
                representation from the National Domestic Violence 
                Hotline and other sources;
                    (G) receive and disseminate information regarding 
                volunteer attorneys and training and mentoring 
                opportunities; and
                    (H) work with the Office on Violence Against Women, 
                the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic 
                Violence, and the National Domestic Violence Legal 
                Advisory Task Force to assess the effectiveness of the 
                Pilot Program.
            (5) Eligibility for grants.--The Attorney General shall 
        award grants to statewide legal coordinators under this 
        subsection.
            (6) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to be appropriated $750,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 and 
        2009 to fund the statewide coordinator positions and other 
        costs associated with the position in the 5 pilot program 
        States under this subsection.
            (7) Evaluation and reporting.--An entity receiving a grant 
        under this subsection shall submit to the Department of Justice 
        a report detailing the activities taken with the grant funds, 
        including such additional information as the agency shall 
        require.
    (b) National Program.--
            (1) Purpose.--The purpose of the national program under 
        this subsection is to--
                    (A) provide for a coordinated system of ensuring 
                that domestic violence victims throughout the country 
                have access to safe, culturally and linguistically 
                appropriate representation in legal matters arising as 
                a consequence of the abuse or violence; and
                    (B) support statewide legal coordinators in each 
                State to coordinate referrals to domestic violence 
                attorneys and to train attorneys on related domestic 
                violence issues, including immigration matters.
            (2) Grants.--The Attorney General shall award grants to 
        States for the purposes set forth in subsection (a) and to 
        support designated statewide legal coordinators under this 
        subsection.
            (3) Role of the statewide legal coordinator.--The statewide 
        legal coordinator under this subsection shall be subject to the 
        requirements and responsibilities provided in subsection 
        (a)(4).
            (4) Guidelines.--The Office on Violence Against Women, in 
        consultation with the Domestic Violence Legal Advisory Task 
        Force and the results detailed in the Study of Legal 
        Representation of Domestic Violence Victims, shall develop 
        guidelines for the implementation of the national program under 
        this section, based on the effectiveness of the Pilot Program 
        in improving victims' access to culturally and linguistically 
        appropriate legal representation in the pilot States.
            (5) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to be appropriated $8,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 
        through 2013 to fund the statewide coordinator position in 
        every State and other costs associated with the position.
            (6) Evaluation and reporting.--An entity receiving a grant 
        under this subsection shall submit to the Department of Justice 
        a report detailing the activities taken with the grant funds, 
        including such additional information as the agency shall 
        require.

SEC. 5. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 
              VOLUNTEER ATTORNEY NETWORK.

    (a) Purposes.--The purpose of this section is to allow--
            (1) national domestic violence legal technical assistance 
        providers to expand their services to provide training and 
        ongoing technical assistance to volunteer attorneys in the 
        National Domestic Violence Volunteer Attorney Network; and
            (2) providers of domestic violence law to receive 
        additional funding to train and assist attorneys in the areas 
        of--
                    (A) custody and child support;
                    (B) employment;
                    (C) housing;
                    (D) immigrant victims' legal needs (including 
                immigration, protection order, family and public 
                benefits issues); and
                    (E) interstate custody and relocation law.
    (b) Grants.--The Attorney General shall award grants to national 
domestic violence legal technical assistance providers to expand their 
services to provide training and ongoing technical assistance to 
volunteer attorneys in the National Domestic Violence Volunteer 
Attorney Network, statewide legal coordinators, the National Domestic 
Violence Hotline and Internet-based legal referral organizations 
described in section 1201(i)(1) of the Violence Against Women Act of 
2000, as added by section 6.
    (c) Eligibility for Other Grants.--A receipt of an award under this 
section shall not preclude the national domestic violence legal 
technical assistance providers from receiving additional grants under 
the Office on Violence Against Women's Technical Assistance Program to 
carry out the purposes of that program.
    (d) Eligible Entities.--In this section, an eligible entity is a 
national domestic violence legal technical assistance provider that--
            (1) has expertise on legal issues that arise in cases of 
        victims of domestic violence, dating violence and stalking, 
        including family, immigration, housing, protection order, 
        public benefits, custody, child support, interstate custody and 
        relocation, employment and other civil legal needs of victims; 
        and
            (2) has an established record of providing technical 
        assistance and support to lawyers representing victims of 
        domestic violence.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $800,000 for national domestic 
violence legal technical assistance providers for each fiscal year from 
2008 through 2013.

SEC. 6. NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE LEGAL REFERRALS.

    Section 1201 of the Violence Against Women Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 
3796gg-6) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Legal Referrals by the National Domestic Violence Hotline.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Attorney General may award grants to 
        the National Domestic Violence Hotline (as authorized by 
        section 316 of the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 10416)) to provide information about statewide legal 
        coordinators and legal services.
            ``(2) Use of funds.--Funds allocated to the National 
        Domestic Violence Hotline under this subsection shall be used 
        to--
                    ``(A) update the Hotline's technology and systems 
                to reflect legal services and referrals to statewide 
                legal coordinators;
                    ``(B) collaborate with the American Bar Association 
                Commission on Domestic Violence and the national 
                domestic violence legal technical assistance providers 
                to train and provide appropriate assistance to the 
                Hotline's advocates on legal services; and
                    ``(C) maintain a network of legal services and 
                statewide legal coordinators and collaborate with the 
                American Bar Association Commission on Domestic 
                Violence.
            ``(3) Authorization.--There are to be appropriated to carry 
        out this subsection $500,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 
        through 2013.
    ``(i) Legal Referrals by Internet-Based Services for Domestic 
Violence Victims.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Attorney General may award grants to 
        Internet-based non-profit organizations with a demonstrated 
        expertise on domestic violence to provide State-specific 
        information about statewide legal coordinators and legal 
        services through the Internet.
            ``(2) Use of funds.--Funds allocated to Internet-based 
        organizations under this subsection shall be used to--
                    ``(A) collaborate with the American Bar Association 
                Commission on Domestic Violence and the national 
                domestic violence legal technical assistance providers 
                to train and provide appropriate assistance to 
                personnel on referring legal services; and
                    ``(B) maintain a network of legal services and 
                statewide legal coordinators, and collaborate with the 
                American Bar Association Commission on Domestic 
                Violence and the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
            ``(3) Authorization.--There are to be appropriated to carry 
        out this subsection $250,000 for each fiscal years of 2008 
        through 2013.''.

SEC. 7. STUDY OF LEGAL REPRESENTATION OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS.

    (a) In General.--The General Accountability Office shall study the 
scope and quality of legal representation and advocacy for victims of 
domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, including the 
provision of culturally and linguistically appropriate services.
    (b) Scope of Study.--The General Accountability Office shall 
specifically assess the representation and advocacy of--
            (1) organizations providing direct legal services and other 
        support to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, and 
        stalking, including Legal Services Corporation grantees, non-
        Legal Services Corporation legal services organizations, 
        domestic violence programs receiving Legal Assistance for 
        Victims grants or other Violence Against Women Act funds to 
        provide legal assistance, volunteer programs (including those 
        operated by bar associations and law firms), law schools which 
        operate domestic violence, and family law clinical programs; 
        and
            (2) organizations providing support to direct legal 
        services delivery programs and to their volunteer attorneys, 
        including State coalitions on domestic violence, National Legal 
        Aid and Defender Association, the American Bar Association 
        Commission on Domestic Violence, the American Bar Association 
        Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service, State bar 
        associations, judicial organizations, and national advocacy 
        organizations (including the Legal Resource Center on Violence 
        Against Women, and the National Center on Full Faith and 
        Credit).
    (c) Assessment.--The assessment shall, with respect to each entity 
under subsection (b), include--
            (1) what kind of legal assistance is provided to victims of 
        domestic violence, such as counseling or representation in 
        court proceedings;
            (2) number of lawyers on staff;
            (3) how legal services are being administered in a 
        culturally and linguistically appropriate manner, and the 
        number of multi-lingual advocates;
            (4) what type of cases are related to the abuse, such as 
        protective orders, divorce, housing, and child custody matters, 
        and immigration filings;
            (5) what referral mechanisms are used to match a lawyer 
        with a domestic violence victim;
            (6) what, if any, collaborative partnerships are in place 
        between the legal services program and domestic violence 
        agencies;
            (7) what existing technical assistance or training on 
        domestic violence and legal skills is provided to attorneys 
        providing legal services to victims of domestic violence;
            (8) what training or technical assistance for attorneys 
        would improve the provision of legal services to victims of 
        domestic violence;
            (9) how does the organization manage means-testing or 
        income requirements for clients;
            (10) what, if any legal support is provided by non-lawyer 
        victim advocates; and
            (11) whether they provide support to or sponsor a pro bono 
        legal program providing legal representation to victims of 
        domestic violence.
    (d) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the General Accountability Office shall submit to Congress a 
report on the findings and recommendations of the study required by 
this section.

SEC. 8. ESTABLISH A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LEGAL ADVISORY TASK FORCE.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall establish the Domestic 
Violence Legal Advisory Task Force to provide guidance for the 
implementation of the Study of Legal Representation of Domestic 
Violence Victims, the Pilot Program for the National Domestic Violence 
Volunteer Attorney Referral Project, and the National Program for the 
National Domestic Violence Volunteer Attorney Referral Project.
    (b) Composition.--The Task Force established under this section 
shall be composed of experts in providing legal assistance to domestic 
violence victims and developing effective volunteer programs providing 
legal assistance to domestic violence victims, including judges with 
expertise on domestic violence, individuals with experience 
representing low-income domestic violence victims, and private bar 
members involved with volunteer legal services.
    (c) Responsibilities.--The Task Force shall provide--
            (1) ongoing advice to the American Bar Association 
        Commission on Domestic Violence, the National Domestic Violence 
        Hotline, and the Statewide Coordinators regarding 
        implementation of the Pilot Program and the National Program of 
        the Domestic Violence Volunteer Attorney Referral Project;
            (2) recommendations to the Office on Violence Against Women 
        regarding the selection of the 5 sites for the Pilot Program; 
        and
            (3) attend regular meetings covered by American Bar 
        Association Commission or Domestic Violence.
    (d) Report.--The Task Force shall report to Congress every 2 years 
on its work under this section.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $100,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2008 through 2013.
                                 <all>