Law Clinic Provides Legal Advice to Community
The free Legal Aid Clinic, provided by the Comanche Nation tribe, took place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on January 5 at the Comanche Nation Tribal Courthouse.
Joshua Farmer, an attorney with Great Plains Legal Services, said the clinic provides services to any Comanche Nation member, registered or eligible, once a week and one weekend a month.
“We provide services…range from helping people do wills,” he said. “We point people in the right direction depending on what their legal issues are. If it’s a legal issue that’s in the tribe, we can give legal advice for it. If it’s a legal issue…in state court, we will direct people that ‘they need to hire somebody in downtown,’ or just point them in the right direction.”
Those services include guardianship to custody disputes to criminal matters.
“We’re also the public defender’s office for the Comanche Nation,” Farmer said. “So, we handle a lot of criminal cases and we do guardian ad litem services for the Comanche Nation. So, for children that are in need that need attorneys, the court will appoint us.”
Famer said they’re defense attorneys for the public defender but also a general council.
He said that during the day, it varies. Farmer said that during the week, six or seven people would stop by; however, the weekends are busier.
“Especially when we do the wills clinic, which…every third clinic is the wills clinic on the weekends, so this month in January we’re doing the wills clinic,” he said. “Those last…time I think we had 10 or 15.”
Farmer said it’s beneficial for people because it provides access to information they wouldn’t usually have.
“It allows them to come in and get free access every week or the once a weekend that we do once a weekend and it allows to them to have a…it’s out here on the complex so it’s a familiar location, easy accesses and it gives them a good start in…whatever legal issue they may have,” he said
Farmer said he gets asked if a legal matter can be done in the tribe more than any other question.
“And it’s the first question we need to answer, because if the tribe doesn’t have jurisdiction, then they would have to go to a different court, whether it be state court or CFR court,” he said. “So that’s probably…the most important and one of the most commonly asked questions.”
He said that with custody issues, wills are among the most commonly asked about.
If someone has a legal issue, Farmer said to contact the clinic.
“Whenever we’re scheduled out for the clinic, they can call and the court clerk will put their call through, and as long as we’re not with somebody, we’ll take that, if not we’ll call you back,” he said. “But definitely if you have a legal issue, give us a call first so we can get you in the right direction.”
The following clinics are from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on January 12, 19 and 26; however, the will clinic is from 10 a.m. to. 2 p.m. on January 21.
If it’s not a clinic day, they’re still available. Farmer said for people to contact the Great Plains Legal Services office at www.gplawok.com or call 405-766-5951. The tribal courthouse can be reached at 580-402-3822 for more information.
