Empire Justice Center and The Legal Aid Society have announced a landmark $4 million grant from the Interest on Lawyer Account (IOLA) Fund of the State of New York to build and launch a first-of-its-kind statewide Training Center dedicated to strengthening and expanding civil legal services across New York.

This unprecedented investment, part of the IOLA Fund’s Justice Infrastructure Project, will establish a new coordinated training hub designed exclusively for civil legal services providers. Over the next four years, the Training Center will develop and deliver high-quality, accessible training to attorneys, paralegals, advocates, and other professionals who serve New Yorkers facing eviction, domestic violence, consumer debt, immigration matters, barriers to public benefits, and among other civil legal crises, based on a comprehensive community needs assessment.

The Training Center will be jointly developed and operated by Empire Justice Center and The Legal Aid Society, combining decades of experience in training, litigation, and advocacy.

“With this visionary support from the IOLA Fund, New York is charting a new standard in building the infrastructure our civil legal services community has long deserved,” said Adriene Holder, Chief Attorney of the Civil Practice at Legal Aid. “This Training Center will expand the skill, reach, and impact of advocates in every corner of the state, and ensure that low-income New Yorkers receive the strong, life-changing advocacy they deserve.”

In its first year, the Training Center will create statewide infrastructure, conduct a comprehensive needs assessment, procure a learning-management system capable of hosting live and on-demand programming, and launch initial trainings. Over the full four-year grant cycle, the Center will host in-person trainings in every IOLA region, manage a statewide New Hire Training Series, expand skills-based programs, and roll out a robust catalogue of on-demand content to meet the evolving needs of the field.

The result will be a stronger, more coordinated, efficient and more skilled civil legal services community — one better equipped to advance justice for the millions of New Yorkers who need legal help each year.