Legal aid group gets IOLTA funds

CLINTON — Mission First Legal Aid Office has been awarded an $80,000 grant by the Mississippi Bar Foundation. Grants totaling $715,000 have been awarded this year through the Mississippi Interest on Lawyers Trust Account Program (IOLTA).

The IOLTA) program was established by order of the Mississippi Supreme Court as a source of funding to provide legal aid to the poor, to provide law related public education programs to the public and to improve the administration of justice.

The IOLTA grant will enable Mission First Legal Aid Office to continue to serve those in need efficiently and effectively. Since its inception in 1984 the IOLTA program has awarded over $11 million in grants.

Organized in 2006, Mission First Legal Aid Office has become the primary civil legal aid provider to qualified low-to-moderate income persons in Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties. Mission First Legal Aid Office is unique in that it is a partnership between Mississippi College School of Law and Mission First, a ministry located in west Jackson offering medical, dental and wellness services in the tri-county area and programs for children and teenagers.