CAPLAW responds to a member's request for assistance by providing an initial consultation and confirming the benefits available to members. If the CAPLAW member has retained local counsel, that counsel will be consulted. In appropriate cases, CAPLAW consults its Board of Directors for a determination of assistance eligibility and benefits.
Membership in CAPLAW does not eliminate the need for local counsel in regard to local administrative matters and other situations not related to the national community action legislation. CAPLAW services are designed to be an additional resource for local counsel faced with a community action issue that requires specialized knowledge and skills. CAPLAW's attorneys are prepared to assist local counsel or to assume a leadership role upon consultation. The possibilities for representation vary and are flexible.
Yes. Membership in CAPLAW is open to all CAAs as well as to state community action associations and regional community action associations with 35 or fewer members.
Membership in CAPLAW is similar to a "retainer" relationship commonly used by businesses to secure continuing legal services from a specific law firm at a price agreed upon in advance. The cost of legal representation is a necessary expense for CAAs in view of the quasi-governmental nature of their funding and program activities. Membership, therefore, should be an allowable expense within the meaning of the office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-122 which specifies cost standards for non-profit organizations.
However, an exception does exist with regard to allowability of expenditures. OMB Circular A-122 and federal agency cost standards provide that monies expended in "the prosecution of claims against the Federal government" generally are deemed unallowable, and hence, not reimbursable. The point at which a "claim against the government" actually is initiated is not always clear. Circular A-122 also restricts the use of federal funds in connection with certain legal proceedings brought by a local , state, or federal government. Therefore, if services of this nature represent an appropriate way to resolve a problem that your CAA encounters, a CAPLAW representative will schedule a meeting and discuss the implications that a particular course of action may have on the allowability of your expenditures.
