Measuring Outcomes of Legal Aid Programs
Part of the Case for Legal Aid: "We Get Results that Benefit Everyone."

Outcome measurement is a powerful tool for examining how clients benefit as a result of the services they receive from legal aid programs. Led by IOLTA programs in several states such as New York and Virginia, and with help from The Resource, statewide legal aid systems are implementing outcome measures as a cornerstone of their efforts to demonstrate results for communities.

The Resource presented a workshop on this topic at the November 2009 NLADA Annual Conference in Denver, entitled Applying Measures of Program Effectiveness to Expand Resources and Improve Client Outcomes. Our co-presenter was John Whitfield, Executive Director of Blue Ridge Legal Services (Virginia). Click on the links below for further resources:

• An overview article on the role of outcome measurement in civil justice programs: Outcomes.pdf

• PowerPoint slides used in our presentation: Handouts.pdf

• Handouts used for a presentation by John Whitfield: "You Get What You Measure:" Measure_Handouts.pdf

• A sample scorecard for a legal aid program in Pennsylvania based on performance benchmarks: Sample_Scorecard.pdf

About The Resource for Great Programs

Now in our 26th year, The Resource for Great Programs is a consulting firm based in Michigan that assists civil legal aid programs and their funders across the nation.

Our services concentrate on points of leverage in our client organizations where small-dollar investments can deliver big gains in impact.

Our president Ken Smith, our IOLTA Project Manager Kelly Thayer, and the remainder of our staff are experts in data analysis, policy and demographic research, program evaluation, and leadership disciplines, supported by our main office in Traverse City, Michigan. In addition, we can extend our reach as needed via a growing network of other firms and consultants with whom we collaborate as opportunities arise for producing extraordinary outcomes for our clients.