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Some may think that because the services are free through a nonprofit, they may be less than what a private attorney would offer. This misconception can discourage people who need assistance from reaching out. In reality, the services are quality and life-changing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think people hear free legal services, and they think, \u2018Oh, well, maybe I\u2019ll get some advice, but they\u2019re really not going to do much for me.\u2019 But the opposite is really true\u2026 They may not realize that when you come to Legal Aid, you will get everything that you would get with a private attorney. You\u2019re just getting it for free.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jernigan, an advocate in the Tullahoma office, joined Legal Aid Society in 2002. She explained that if they can not provide legal representation in a courtroom, they can still provide the most powerful tool: education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always believed that knowledge is power\u2026 If we can\u2019t help somebody, we can at least give them information,\u201d Jernigan said. \u201cAnd that information gives them the power because so many times when you\u2019re victimized or you\u2019re taken advantage of, your powers are taken away. And by getting that information\u2026 even if we can\u2019t represent them in court, we can give them some piece of information that gives them some power back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jernigan has worked with the Legal Aid Society for 20 years. Before her work with the team, she worked as a licensed social service worker with the Utah Division of Child and Family Services and with the Tennessee Department of Children\u2019s Services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo I think seeing people who are disproportionately disadvantaged get some of their power back is the greatest thing that you can do,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some citizens not familiar with legal disputes may not be aware of the impact they can have on a family, especially a family without expendable capital ready. \u201cIt\u2019s not about charity. It\u2019s not about a handout. It\u2019s not about having people get something for free. It\u2019s about assisting. We partner with people to help them navigate through a really complex legal problem,\u201d Jernigan said. \u201c… That can be the difference between homelessness and not. Most of us are just a few paychecks away from being in a bad situation.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n With the help of Jernigan, Hoole, and the Legal Aid Society in Tullahoma, those who would often have nowhere else to turn to have a place to go. Their civil legal issues don\u2019t have to be life-altering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Tullahoma office works to provide direct representation, community education, and self-advocacy tools to ensure the vulnerable citizens of Tullahoma have a voice. GN<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Legal Aid Society office in Tullahoma is here to help in impactful ways. The organization provides civil legal assistance to Middle Tennessee.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":8982,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8926","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/names-1-1024x807.jpg\")