Check out the NCCRC’s legislative activity in the 2026 session!

The National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (NCCRC), a project of the Public Justice Center, is the only entity in the country dedicated solely to advancing the right to counsel in critical civil cases. Legal counsel in life-changing civil cases makes a difference: represented individuals are more likely to remain housed, secure protective orders, and avoid immigration removal. 

The NCCRC tracks relevant civil right to counsel legislation around the country.  We track and work with local advocates on this legislation, because a shift in the law can be the difference between a mandatory appointment of counsel and the court making the appointment decision at its discretion, or whether the stated interests of a child involved in a child welfare case or a person subject to an adult guardianship case are represented to the court.

As of May 2026, the NCCRC: 

• Tracked almost 200 federal- and state-level bills to enact, change, or repeal a right to counsel in our key areas, which include housing (primarily eviction cases), family law, domestic violence, guardianship, immigration, civil forfeiture, civil incarceration, and education.  Across the bills, we’ve identified some trends:
  
• • Housing: So far this session, there are 31 eviction-related bills, the vast majority of which would establish or expand a tenant right to counsel (TRTC), some to appropriate money for a TRTC program, and one that would require the judiciary to collect and publicly share eviction-related data.  Unfortunately, the state of Indiana introduced a bill that attempts to preempt municipalities from regulating anything within the landlord-tenant field and a bill in Wisconsin failed to pass because it was introduced too late in the session. 
  • Immigration: Immigration proceedings and the lack of a right to counsel in these cases came to the forefront in 2025. Many states have introduced bills that, while not providing a right to appointed counsel, aim to ensure that detained persons are able to contact their attorney, guaranteeing an “opportunity to consult with counsel” and “reasonable phone access.”  These bills emphasize growing concerns about rampant rights violations at detention facilities, including a lack of access to counsel, an issue that is unfortunately not new.
  • Civil Forfeiture: Civil forfeiture laws allow government entities to confiscate and retain individual property allegedly connected to a criminal case or investigation, often without a criminal conviction. Seven states and the U.S. Congress all introduced bills this session that would establish or expand appointments in forfeiture cases.
  • Family Law: Both last session and in 2026, we saw bills that would require notice to parents upon their first interaction with child protective services, sometimes referred to as “Miranda Rights for Families.” Parents would have to be informed of the allegations against them, their right to counsel, and their right to remain silent. 
  • Guardianship: Numerous states have introduced bills again this session to adopt provisions from the Uniform Guardianship Conservatorship and Other Protective Arrangements (UGCOPA) Act. Read more in our 2025-2026 Right to Counsel in Guardianship Cases Overview.

• Submitted testimony on eleven (11) bills, most commonly upon request by a state or national partner.  We opposed a West Virginia bill that would have weakened the right to counsel for kids in abuse cases and a Washington guardianship bill that weakened the right to counsel for adults by implementing a request requirement; and testified in support of a Colorado bill that would have provided a right to counsel in forfeiture cases and a Rhode Island bill that would create a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction.
  • Child Welfare. As outlined in the American Bar Association’s Model Act Governing Representation of Children in Dependency, when children are involved in child welfare or dependency cases it is imperative that they are appointed an attorney that represents their stated interests. This session, West Virginia’s SB 539 would weaken a child’s right to client-directed counsel in neglect proceedings. We submitted testimony in opposition. In Arizona, SB 1234 would repeal a child’s right to client-directed counsel and replace it with mandatory appointment of an attorney ad litem and discretionary appointment of counsel. We submitted testimony in opposition.
  • Forfeiture. The law in most states allows the government to seize property alleged to have been involved in a crime (cars, houses, etc.), even if the person has not been or is never convicted of a crime, and in some states the criminal right to counsel does not extend to the portion of the criminal case addressing forfeiture of property.  NH HB 1801 would specify that if a defendant has a public defender in their criminal case, they represent the defendant for the forfeiture proceeding.
  • Adult Guardianship. People subject to guardianship petitions need an attorney to represent their interests because these cases can strip individuals of their fundamental rights (where they live, medicine they take, who they can associate with, etc.). In Virginia, SB 345 would strengthen the discretionary appointment of counsel in guardianship cases by allowing appointment when requested by an immediate family member or an agent who is party to the proceedings.  We support strengthening discretionary appointments, but took this opportunity to submit testimony to push the VA legislature to go even further and create a right to counsel instead of a discretionary appointment system. In Alaska, SB 190 would unfortunately narrow the right to counsel for protected persons in guardianship proceedings and we submitted testimony in opposition.
• Contacted local, state or national partners about eleven (11) bills
• Provided technical assistance on four (4) bills, including help with drafting bill language.

Visit the NCCRC’s website for news or legislative updates. The website is updated as bills are introduced. Local ordinances do not appear on the legislative developments page or on the status map unless they have been enacted.