A Critical Setback for Access to Justice in North Carolina
This week, the North Carolina General Assembly put forth a state budget that has a provision redirecting nearly all Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account (IOLTA) funding away from civil legal aid.
An IOLTA account is a special type of bank account lawyers use to hold client money temporarily, such as real estate closing settlement funds. The client’s money stays safe and fully available to them, but any interest earned goes to programs that support legal aid, including Pisgah Legal Services. In North Carolina, this program has awarded more than $134 million to assist people with low incomes since its inception in 1983. These are not taxpayer dollars.
The budget includes new eligibility requirements for organizations receiving funding, including:
- Organizations that assist immigrants (including applications for visas, lawful permanent resident and asylum) under federal immigration law, will no longer be eligible to receive IOLTA grant funds.
- The funds will no longer be awarded to organizations that legally assist transgender people in seeking access to healthcare.
- And, perhaps most chilling, IOLTA funds are no longer available to organizations that advocate for public policies that protect the rights of the poor and vulnerable, denying the rights of free speech to organizations who are often the voice for those who are voiceless.
You can read the specific language of these restrictions on page 436 of the budget here.
As an organization, Pisgah Legal is committed to serving all who qualify for our services, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, age, or political affiliation.
Who Will Be Affected?
Pearl, Rick and Najah are Pisgah Legal clients from communities across WNC. Their stories illustrate the impact IOLTA funding has made over the past three decades: from protecting survivors of domestic violence and preserving homeownership to, most recently, helping families recover after Hurricane Helene. Their stories are linked below, and each video is just over a minute long. Please watch and share them with others because they show exactly what is at stake for WNC with the loss of IOLTA funding.
What’s Next?
While this outcome is deeply disappointing, Pisgah Legal anticipated the possibility after last year’s freeze on IOLTA funding. Our Board approved a balanced 2026 budget that does not include IOLTA funding, so our current services and staffing will continue without interruption. However, we will need to fill a gap in the coming years without this longstanding funding source.
Our commitment to the people of Western North Carolina has not changed. Every day, we continue helping families remain safely housed, supporting survivors of domestic violence, protecting veterans’ benefits, assisting older adults, advocating for immigrant families, and helping communities recover from disaster.
How You Can Help
This moment calls on all of us to stand up for equal access to justice.
You can make a difference by:
- Supporting Pisgah Legal Services. Your financial support helps ensure that families across Western North Carolina continue to have access to free civil legal assistance when they need it most. Visit pisgahlegal.org/give to make a gift online or contact Ally Wilson to learn more about other ways to give. Consider making a multi-year pledge so that we can rely on your support in future years.
- Contacting your state legislators. Let them know that civil legal aid is an essential service that strengthens families, communities, and local economies. Find their contact information here.
- Making your voice heard. Learn about the issues, connect with your elected officials and participate in the civic process.
- Introducing Pisgah Legal to others. If you know an individual, business, foundation, or civic organization that believes everyone deserves access to justice, we’d love an introduction. New supporters and funding partners are more important than ever.
Together, we can ensure that justice remains within reach for everyone in Western North Carolina, not just those who can afford it.
