Frequently Asked Questions

ALSC, or Alaska Legal Services Corporation,  is an application-based, nonprofit organization that provides free civil legal aid and advocacy to help the people of Alaska obtain the basic necessities of life: food, shelter, health care, safety and education. We are the only statewide provider of comprehensive civil legal aid for low-income and vulnerable Alaskans.

To begin the application process for civil legal assistance, you can apply online here or call 1-888-478-2572 to complete a phone application. For those unable to apply online or by phone, paper applications for each ALSC office are available. Once eligibility for our services is confirmed, we will make every attempt to staff your case with an advocate, but due to limited resources, we cannot guarantee assistance in every case. If your case is accepted, an ALSC advocate will be scheduled to discuss your issue with you and inform you of the services we can provide based on current resources.

ALSC can help you with a wide range of legal issues including:

• Consumer issues including debt collection, garnishment, repossession, contracts, debtor harassment, and other consumer matters.

• Domestic violence issues such as orders of protection, custody/visitation, child/spousal support, divorce, domestic violence related housing and public benefits issues.

• Elder advocacy for Alaska residents who are at least 60 years of age who are in social and/or economic need.

• Family law matters including divorce, juvenile issues, custody and adoption, and domestic abuse.

• Housing advice and representation for foreclosures, mortgage scams, landlord tenant disputes, subsidized housing, fair lending, fair housing, and other issues.

• Access to health care for Medicaid and Medicare, home or community based care, Denali KidCare, and children’s health insurance programs.

• Public benefits access including health care, cash assistance, SNAP/food assistance, reemployment assistance, social security and disability benefits.

• Veteran aid for disability compensation, pensions, filing appeals for Veterans Claims, inappropriate discharge, dependent and survivor benefits, and other public benefits.

ALSC can also help with probate matters including guardianship defense, wills, living wills, estates and powers of attorney.

No, ALSC cannot handle criminal cases. Individuals who cannot afford an attorney in their criminal case can request from a judge that an attorney be appointed through the Public Defender Agency.

Since ALSC is an application-based program, when you contact ALSC we will ask you questions about your household income to see if you are eligible for our services. We may also ask you questions about your legal issue. Please be prepared with all of the information and papers about your legal problem.

ALSC staff or volunteers may be able to provide legal information or advice, help with documents/forms, or represent you in court and administrative proceedings in most areas of civil law. Because the number of people demanding legal services exceeds the amount of staff and money available to handle cases, ALSC cannot take every case. Of the cases we are able to take, the level of assistance provided depends on our available resources at the time. 

Criminal cases are not handled because the state provides public defenders to represent persons accused of criminal actions who cannot afford private attorneys. ALSC generally does not deal with cases where a person is seeking money as a settlement. In such cases a private attorney will usually represent a client without a fee, collecting a fee only if the client’s case is won. The attorney’s fee is a percentage of the client’s settlement. This is called a contingency fee.