About Us

Welcome to our website. Florida Rural Legal Services, Inc. (FRLS) was founded in 1966 as a private, non-profit corporation. FRLS provides free civil legal assistance to indigents and low-income elderly people in thirteen counties in South Central Florida. FRLS also provides legal assistance to migrant workers throughout the state of Florida.

Currently, FRLS has 6 offices, with a staff of 70 including 25 attorneys specializing in Elder Law, Employment, Economic Stability, Housing and Farm-Worker Law. We also provide high quality services in such areas as Public Benefits, Civil Rights and Family Law. Each year FRLS handles between 4,000 to 5,000 cases.

Kinds of Cases We Handle

SC, an anxious senior citizen, was being threatened with suit for over $100,000 in medical bills due to open heart surgery. Although her income and assets were low, we determined that she did not qualify for Medicaid or Medicare assistance. We then contacted the hospital to explain her situation and assisted her with application for an indigent care waiver. The hospital agreed not to sue SC and found her eligible for free continuing medical treatment.

KS had been in a physically abusive marriage for several years and had tried to take steps to protect herself. Because she suffers from seizures and memory loss, she had never been successful in getting an injunction for protection on her own. With our representation, she was successful in getting the much needed injunction. We also helped her apply for relocation assistance so that she could obtain new housing and live independently.

PJ was faced with foreclosure on her family home of over 17 years, when her husband needed surgery and she lost her job for absenteeism while providing him with care. We filed an answer alleging that the mortgage company had charged her excessive penalty and property inspection fees, inflating her loan balance. As a result of those defenses, the mortgage company finally agreed to a favorable payment agreement and the home was saved.

Some of our Accomplishments

In the past year we were able to achieve many good results for our clients. A partial list of some of the cumulative benefit amounts from 2007 is as follows;

• Social Security Benefits...$537,373

• Medicaid Benefits.....$116..,419

• Unemployment Benefits.....$198,018

• Wages & Employment.....$58,394

Our offices closed almost 4,700 cases for individuals in 2007, and they provided free legal information and education to over 22,500 persons, on a wide range of topics.