Lawyers can't solve this problem alone: business leaders make Florida's civil justice access commission unique.

"What's the use of having a great civil justice system, if a large segment of our population does not have access to it?"

Chief Justice Jorge Labarga posed that question on November 24, just before signing an administrative order creating the Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice.

He stood with Florida Bar President Greg Coleman and Florida Bar Foundation President Emerson R. Thompson in the rotunda of the Florida Supreme Court, as they publicly announced their commitment to find a better way to deliver civil legal services to not only Florida's low-income citizens, but to middleclass folks who earn too much to qualify for legal aid, but not enough to hire lawyers.

The first meeting of the 27-member commission is January 16 in Tallahassee.

"The situation has reached a crisis point," Labarga said, providing these facts:

* Only 20 percent of indigent persons are able to receive legal counsel in civil cases.

* The number of self-represented litigants has increased significantly over the past decade, with the majority of family law matters in most states now including at least one unrepresented party, some of whom are unable to prepare court documents and effectively present their positions in court proceedings.

* The population eligible for Legal Services Corporation-funded legal services has grown dramatically in recent years, at the same time federal funding for L SC has declined about 17 percent from 2010-12.

* The Florida Interest on Trust Account Program that provides funds to support legal assistance for the poor is experiencing severely reduced revenue because of historic low interest rates.

Referring to the middle-class shut out of civil justice system or forced to go it alone without legal representation, Labarga said: "I'm talking about hardworking Floridians trying to raise a family on a salary of $50,000. These are your schoolteachers, fire fighters, police officers. The list goes on and on....

"How many of these folks give up precious rights they may have, simply because they cannot afford to hire a lawyer? The problem of access to civil justice is not just a matter for the very poor who obviously need it. It is also a problem of the middle class."

While joining 32 other states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in establishing access to justice initiatives, what makes the Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice unique is its involvement of high-profile business leaders, Coleman said.

Coleman was proud to...