MEASURING CALIFORNIANS’ UNMET CIVIL LEGAL NEEDS
In 2019, the State Bar of California partnered with NORC at the University of Chicago to survey Californians about their civil legal needs. The final report, titled The California Justice Gap: Measuring the Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Californians (hereafter 2019 NORC report), found that 55 percent of households experienced at least one civil legal problem in the past year. Moreover, Californians sought legal help for fewer than one in three problems and received either no or inadequate legal help for 85 percent of their civil legal problems. In 2024, the State Bar again partnered with NORC to assess the current landscape by surveying over 6,000 Californians. The narrative below is an overview of NORC’s final report, The 2024 California Justice Gap: Understanding California’s Unmet Civil Legal Needs (hereafter 2024 NORC report), which explored the prevalence of civil legal needs and the extent to which legal needs are met across California’s income distribution.
KEY FINDINGS
Overall, California’s justice gap remains deep and persistent. Key findings from the 2024 NORC report and the State Bar’s analysis that compares findings from the 2019 survey with the 2024 survey are as follows:
Prevalence of Civil Legal Needs
- Californian’s civil legal needs appear to be growing: In 2019, just over half of California households experienced at least one civil legal problem in the previous 12 months.
- In the past year, seven in 10 California households experienced at least one civil legal problem, with an average of six problems per household.
- Civil legal problems are widespread across all income groups in California, with little variation in prevalence—between 72 and 75 percent of households in every income group experienced at least one civil legal issue in the past year.
- One in four households experienced a civil legal problem that substantially impacted their lives, including financial, mental, physical, and relational impacts. Civil legal problems took a greater toll on California’s lowest-income households.
- The two most common civil legal problems among all income groups were related to consumer issues and health care.
Seeking Legal Help
- The 2019 NORC survey found that Californians sought legal help for 32 percent of their civil legal problems. Results from the 2024 survey suggest that this share has declined, with Californians currently seeking legal help for just 18 percent of their problems overall and just 29 percent of problems that substantially impact them.
- Most Californians, regardless of income level, do not seek legal help for their civil legal problems, even for those that substantially impact them.
- Overall, Californians seek help from a lawyer for only three in 10 civil legal problems that substantially impact them, with lowest-income Californians seeking legal help from lawyers for just 23 percent of such problems.
- When Californians speak to lawyers, they are told they have a valid case and should pursue legal action for one in three of their problems-and for one in five, they are told their case is valid but not financially worthwhile for the lawyer to pursue.
The Justice Gap
- Californians do not receive any or enough legal help for 85 percent of their civil legal problems overall, the same as what was reported in 2019, and Californians do not receive any or enough legal help for 77 percent of problems that substantially impact their lives.
- The justice gap is found across all income groups in California, with little variation in prevalence—with between 84 and 86 percent of civil legal problems for every income group experiencing a justice gap.
- Despite the prevalence of consumer and heath care-related problems faced by California households, Californians seek legal help for just one in 10 of these problems. In instances where they seek out help, Californians are more likely to do so for problems related to immigration, personal injury, and family and safety.
Barriers to Seeking and Receiving Legal Help
- Californians believe a lawyer or legal professional could resolve just one in three of their civil legal problems.
- Lower-income Californians are more likely to have uncertain or negative perceptions of the civil legal system than middle- and high-income Californians.
- Just six in 10 Californians are confident they could find an affordable lawyer or legal professional, with lowest-income Californians the least confident.
MEASURING CALIFORNIANS’ UNMET CIVIL LEGAL NEEDS
Between August 8 and October 7, 2024, NORC surveyed more than 6,000 California adults using the 2024 California Justice Gap Survey.[1] The survey instrument was largely based on a survey NORC developed for the Legal Services Corporation’s 2022 Justice Gap Study.[2] The survey’s objectives were as follows:
- Measure the prevalence of civil legal problems;
- Assess the extent to which Californians seek legal help;
- Learn what lawyers tell Californians about their civil legal problems;
- Assess the extent to which legal needs are met; and
- Identify barriers to seeking and receiving legal help.
The survey collected detailed information on civil legal needs experienced by the respondent and the respondents’ household using NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak® Panel, Ipsos’s KnowledgePanel®, and Dynata’s opt-in panel. While the 2024 survey shares many similarities with the 2019 survey, the State Bar initiated several notable enhancements:
Larger sample size. Over 6,000 Californians participated—approximately 2,000 more than in 2019—allowing for more robust statistical analysis and greater representation across all four income groups analyzed (see below for how income groups are defined).
Expanded language options. The 2024 survey was available in English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean, compared to English and Spanish in 2019.
New questions reflecting stakeholder feedback to the 2019 survey. These include questions about what lawyers told respondents about their problem (including whether they had valid cases and should take legal action), how respondents prefer to receive legal help, respondents’ willingness to pay for legal advice, and actions Californians take when full legal help is not obtained.
Additional civil legal problems. In response to stakeholder feedback, three new consumer civil legal problems were added—compromised personal information, contract disputes, and personal injury.
NORC’s final report also includes reporting for 10 regions in California and eight subpopulations of interest: households with seniors aged 65 years or older, households with a veteran, individuals from rural areas, individuals with high housing costs, households with children under 18 years old, households with recent domestic violence survivors, households with people with disabilities, and Spanish-speaking individuals with limited English proficiency. Key findings for regions and subpopulations are reported in this summary as well.
Civil Legal Problems
For this study, “civil legal problems” are defined as problems that typically raise justiciable civil legal issues that could be addressed through civil legal action. The survey presented up to 86 problems to respondents and asked whether they or anyone in their household had experienced each one in the past 12 months.[3] In short, civil legal problems were not self-identified by respondents, but rather were tabulated by presenting respondents with lists of civil legal problems, organized by categories, and asking whether they or anyone in their household had experienced them. This method aligns with standard practice in the literature for measuring the prevalence of civil legal problems. While an in-depth interview with a legal expert might reveal that some reported problems are not actually justiciable given specific details surrounding individual problems, most are. For consistency with established research and ease of reporting, all problems are referred to as “civil legal problems” and are grouped into 11 categories for reporting purposes.
Income Groups
While the 2019 study compared Californians at or below 125 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL) to those above that threshold, the 2024 study sampled four income groups to provide a more nuanced understanding of civil legal problems across income levels.[4] The four income categories used for sampling and reporting are shown in table 1.[5]
Table 1. Income Categories, Definitions, and Sample for 2024 California Justice Gap Survey
The NORC report contains an analysis that describes California’s adult population according to this income classification. Key insights include the following:
- High-income Californians are the largest income group, making up 36 percent of Californians, with lowest-income Californians following at 27 percent.
- Latinos account for 50 percent of Californians in the lowest-income group.
- Over half of lowest-income Californians have a high school equivalent or lower, while half of high-income Californians have a college degree.
- Seniors constitute nearly a quarter of lowest- and low-income Californians.
- Women slightly outnumber men within California’s lowest-income group.
✅ Important Notes
Base sizes: Base sizes are provided for visuals wherever possible, and bases with fewer than 200 observations are marked with an asterisk (*). For visuals with multiple levels of disaggregation, see Significant Testing Resource [will include link] for all base sizes associated with each figure from the 2024 NORC report.
Rounding: Not all distributions add up to 100 percent due to rounding.
Units of analysis: The units of analysis and sets of observations used for the estimates vary throughout the 2024 NORC report, including respondents (or their households), civil legal problems, and subsets of respondents, households, or problems. Readers are encouraged to pay close attention to information describing the units of analysis and relevant sets of observations.
Significance testing: The 2024 NORC report includes both statistically significant and nonstatistically significant differences by income category and other groups. Both are included to show meaningful differences as needed for a full understanding of civil legal needs in California. Please see the Significance Testing Resource for a complete list of significant differences for all analyses reported in the 2024 NORC report.
PREVALENCE OF CIVIL LEGAL PROBLEMS
This section presents findings on the prevalence of civil legal problems among California households, which households were more likely to face civil legal problems than others, and the impact these problems had on Californians’ lives. As described above, the survey asked about a total of 86 distinct problems, most of which are grouped into 11 categories—consumer issues, health care, housing, income maintenance, employment, family and safety, wills and estates, education, official records, disability, and immigration—for this report. Personal injury, contracts, and compromised personal information were only asked of 35 percent of respondents during the second wave of data collection and thus are not included in the consumer issues overall problem type. Results are based on respondents’ reports of problems personally experienced and experienced by others in the household in the past year, among 86 distinct problems.[6] Note that a given problem can only be counted once per household. The primary unit of analysis in this section is households.
More California households are experiencing civil legal problems compared with five years ago.
The 2019 study found that 55 percent of California households experienced at least one civil legal problem in the previous 12 months. The 2024 survey suggests that this figure has increased, with nearly three-quarters of California households (73 percent) reporting at least one problem (see figure 1). Civil legal problems are widespread across all income groups in California, with little variation in prevalence—between 72 and 75 percent of households in every income group experienced at least one civil legal issue in the past year.
Figure 1. Percent of California Households that Experienced at Least One Civil Legal Problem in the Previous 12 Months: 2019 and 2024
Note: Data for 2019 drawn from the 2019 NORC report. Data for 2024 drawn from figure 3A in the 2024 NORC report which presents results by income group.
California households reported experiencing an average of six civil legal problems.
Lowest- and middle-income households reported an average of seven problems, and low-income households reported an average of eight problems, while high-income households reported an average of five problems (see table 2).
Table 2. Average Number of Civil Legal Problems Experienced by California Households
Note: The average number of problems calculations include households that experienced no civil legal problems.
Figure 2. Percent of California Households that Experienced Civil Legal Problems by Type of Problem
Note: Data reflects percent of households. Number of households vary as follows: renters (2,274); households with children less than 12 years old (458); all other problem types (6,330). See figure 3B in the 2024 NORC report.
The two most common types of civil legal problems among all California households are related to consumer and health care issues.
Figure 2 presents the types of civil legal problems experienced by California households. The most common civil legal problems were related to consumer issues followed by health care—reversing the pattern observed in 2019, when health care was the most prevalent issue, followed by consumer problems. In 2024, over four in 10 California households experienced a consumer problem, and over three in 10 experienced a health care problem in the past year.
Consumer issues and health care problems are the most common problems among all income groups.
As was the case in 2019, the two most common types of civil legal problems for all income groups involve consumer issues and health care. Nearly half of the lowest-income households experienced a consumer issue, compared to 37 percent of high-income households. In contrast, there is less variation across income groups in the prevalence of health care-related problems. See figure 3.
Figure 3. Percent of California Households that Experienced Consumer and Health Care Problems
Note: Data reflects percent of households. Number of households vary as follows: lowest-income (1,576); low-income (1,495); middle-income (1,501); high-income (1,758). See figure 3B in the 2024 NORC report for income variation for all categories of civil legal problems.
Figure 4. Top Three Consumer-Related Problems Experienced by California Households
Note: Data reflects percent of households. See supplementary resource for Ns. See figure 3C in the 2024 NORC report for the results for all 16 consumer problems in the survey, disaggregated by income.
Nearly half of California households had their personal information compromised in the last year.
As noted above, 41 percent of California households experienced a consumer-related problem in the last year. The most common consumer problems reported included compromised personal information (45 percent), contracts (23 percent), and personal injury (19 percent). The experience of middle-income households is particularly notable: Over half reported compromised information (55 percent), and their rates of legal problems related to contracts and personal injury more closely resemble those of lowest- and low-income California households than those of high-income households. See figure 4.
One in five California households experienced a health care problem where their health insurance did not cover medically necessary services.
As noted above, over one-third (36 percent) of households experienced a civil legal problem related to health care in the past year. The most common problems reported by California households overall included health insurance not covering needed services (20 percent), being billed incorrectly for medical services (18 percent), and having unpaid medical debt (15 percent). See figure 5. Challenges related to health insurance not covering services cut across income levels, with households of all incomes similarly affected by coverage denials. All income groups except for the lowest-income households experienced a similar prevalence of being billed incorrectly for medical services. Nearly one in five low- and middle-income households experienced a problem related to unpaid medical debt.
Figure 5. Most Common Health Care Problems Experienced by California Households
Note: Data reflects percent of households. Number of households vary as follows: overall (6,330); lowest-income (1,576); low-income (1,495); middle-income (1,501); high-income (1,758). See figure 3D in the 2024 NORC report for results for all eight health care problems included in the survey, disaggregated by income.
In the past year, one-quarter of California households experienced a civil legal problem that substantially impacted their lives.
Overall, civil legal problems took a greater toll on lower-income households compared with other income level (see figure 6). For the lowest-income households, the most common impacts were on finances and mental health, with 31 percent reporting substantial impacts on their household’s financial situation and 29 percent reporting the same for their mental and emotional health. Middle- and low-income households reported roughly similar experiences with civil legal problems having substantial impacts on their lives. While high-income households were less likely to report substantial impacts due to civil legal problems, nearly one in five (19 percent) reported that the civil legal problems they experienced substantially impacted their lives.
Figure 6. Percent of California Households that Experienced Civil Legal Problems with Substantial Impacts in Various Aspects of Their Lives
Note: Data reflects percent of households. See figure 3F in the 2024 NORC report.
✅ Prevalence of Civil Legal Problems
Regions: Households in Los Angeles County, the Inland Empire, and the Southern San Joaquin Valley households on average faced more problems in the past year compared with households in the North Coast, the Central Coast, Orange County, and San Diego – Imperial regions.
Special focus groups: Households with high housing costs, children, veterans, people with disabilities, and domestic violence were more likely to face civil legal problems, as were Spanish-speaking Californians with limited English proficiency, than their counterparts. Senior households were less likely to face civil legal problems than non-senior households.
How California compares with the nation:
- Lowest-income American and California households experienced civil legal problems at similar rates. About seven in 10 experienced at least one problem, while about one in five experienced more than 10.
- Consumer and health care problems were the most commonly experienced civil legal problems for both lowest-income American and California households, and both groups experienced the problems at similar rates.
- About half experienced at least one problem pertaining to consumer issues, while about four in 10 experienced at least one health care problem.
SEEKING LEGAL HELP
This section presents findings on how often Californians seek legal help, the types of legal professionals they talk with, and the forms of legal help they seek. The primary unit of analysis in this section is problems. The focus is exclusively on problems that respondents personally experienced (i.e., excluding problems experienced by other household members) and problems that negatively impacted respondents overall to some extent (i.e., excluding problems that impacted them “not at all”).[7] Key terms include the following:
- Problems for which Californians seek legal help: These are problems where respondents reported talking with a legal professional about the problem, including a lawyer, legal aid provider, legal helpline, or paralegal.[8]
- Problems with substantial impact: These are problems impacting respondents “very much” or “severely.”
Californians still rarely seek help for civil legal problems.
The 2019 survey found that Californians sought legal help for 32 percent of their civil legal problems. Results from the most recent survey suggest that this share has declined, with Californians seeking legal help for just 18 percent of their problems (see figure 7).
Figure 7. Percent of Problems for Which Californians Seek Legal Help: 2019 and 2024
Note: Data for 2019 drawn from the 2019 NORC report. Data for 2024 drawn from figure 4A in the 2024 NORC report.
Although the likelihood of seeking legal help is higher for problems with substantial impact, most Californians do not seek legal help for their civil legal problems regardless of income, even for those problems that substantially impact them.
Californians are more likely to seek legal help for problems that substantially impact them than for problems with less impact (see figure 8). Although this impact differential is more pronounced for middle-income Californians, it is universal across all four income groups. Lowest- and high-income Californians seek legal help for just one in four civil legal problems that substantially impact them, while low- and middle-income Californians seek help for three in 10.
Figure 8. Percent of Problems for Which Californians Seek Legal Help
Note: Results reflect percent of problems. Problems with substantial impact are problems impacting respondents “very much” or “severely.” Number of problems vary as follows: all problems (24,297); problems with substantial impact (8,183); problems with less impact (16,114). Data drawn from figure 4A in the 2024 NORC report.
Figure 9. Percent of Substantial Problems for Which Californians Seek Legal Help by Type of Legal Professional
Note: Data reflects the percent of substantial problems for which respondents seek legal help. Number of problems vary as follows: overall (5,155); lowest-income (1,788); low-income (1,341); middle-income (1,261); high-income (765). See figure 4D in the 2024 NORC report.
Californians seek help from a lawyer for only three in 10 civil legal problems that substantially impact them.
Figure 9 displays the different types of legal professionals Californians seek legal help from. As noted above, Californians do not seek help from a legal professional for most of their civil legal problems. However, they are more likely to seek help from a lawyer than any other source when they do seek legal help. While Californians seek out a lawyer for 29 percent of their civil legal problems, they only seek help from a legal aid provider for 25 percent of their problems, a legal helpline for 22 percent of their problems, and a paralegal for 18 percent of their problems. Lowest-income Californians seek legal help for just 23 percent of the civil legal problems that substantially impact them. Although lowest-income Californians are eligible to receive free legal aid services, just one in five seek help from a legal aid provider for problems that substantially impact them.
When Californians consult a lawyer, the most common response is that their case is valid and legal action is recommended.
For 34 percent of problems discussed with a lawyer, Californians are informed that they have a valid case and should take legal action. For around one in four problems discussed with a lawyer, Californians are told that a lawyer would take their case without requiring any payment upfront. One in five of the problems Californians bring to a lawyer is deemed valid, but the potential recovery amount is too low for a lawyer to take the case. See figure 10.
Figure 10. What Californians Hear from Lawyers About Their Civil Legal Problems
Note: Data reflects the percent of problems about which respondents talked to a lawyer (N = 2,682). The survey question was “Did the lawyer you spoke with tell you any of the following?” and was only presented for problems where respondents reported they talked with a lawyer. Respondents were invited to select all that applied. See figure 5D in the 2024 NORC report.
Figure 11. Percent of Problems for Which Californians Seek Various Types of Legal Help from a Legal Professional
Note: These estimates correspond only to problems for which respondents said they talked with a legal professional (N = 4,161 problems). The survey question was, “What kind of legal help did you want when you decided to talk to a lawyer or other legal professional?” See figure 4E in the 2024 NORC report for results, disaggregated by income.
The types of legal help Californians seek reflect the various ways legal professionals can help people with these problems.
Californians across all income groups are most likely to seek legal advice from a legal professional about their specific situation, representation by a lawyer in court, or help negotiating with the other people involved in the problem (see figure 11).
✅ Seeking Legal Help
Regional variations: Californians across the majority of regions seek help for three in 10 of their civil legal issues that impacted them substantially, with the exception of North Coast (16 percent) and Orange County (36 percent).
Special focus groups: Similar to Californians overall, individuals within special focus groups seek help for about three in 10 of their substantial civil legal issues, with the exception of individuals with high housing costs (22 percent), individuals living in households with survivors of domestic violence (23 percent), and Spanish-speaking Californians with limited English proficiency (63 percent).
How California compares with the nation:
- Lowest-income American and California households experienced civil legal problems at similar rates. About seven in 10 experienced at least one problem, while about one in five experienced more than 10.
- Consumer and health care problems were the most commonly experienced civil legal problems for both lowest-income American and California households, and both groups experienced the problems at similar rates.
- About half experienced at least one problem pertaining to consumer issues, while about four in 10 experienced at least one health care problem.
THE JUSTICE GAP
The 2024 California Justice Gap Measurement Survey asked respondents to provide details about their experiences receiving legal help for problems they had personally experienced in the past year. The justice gap is the difference between Californians’ civil legal needs (problems that could be addressed through civil legal action) and the legal help people receive to address those needs. For this study, the justice gap is defined as not receiving any or enough legal assistance to address a civil legal problem. NORC calculated a survey-based measure of the justice gap as follows:
Each part of the measure is defined as follows:
- All problems experienced: All personally experienced problems that impacted respondents to some extent in the past year.
- Problems not receiving any legal help: The subset of problems for which respondents did not seek any legal help.
- Problems not receiving enough legal help: The subset of problems for which respondents sought legal help but did not receive as much as they needed.
While this definition provides a framework for understanding the justice gap, it is important to acknowledge that there is ongoing debate on how the term should be defined or measured.[9]
Californians still do not receive any or enough legal help for the vast majority of their civil legal problems.
Californians do not receive any or enough legal help for 85 percent of their civil legal problems overall, the same as what was reported in 2019 (see figure 12).
Figure 12. Percent of Problems for Which Californians Do Not Receive Any or Enough Legal Help (The Justice Gap)
Note: Data for 2019 drawn from the 2019 NORC report. Data for 2024 drawn from figure 5A in the 2024 NORC report.
Californians across the income distribution do not receive any or enough legal help for the vast majority of their civil legal problems, including problems that substantially impact them.
Although Californians are more likely to receive enough legal help for problems with a substantial impact than for those with less impact, Californians experience a justice gap for nearly eight in 10 problems that substantially impact them (see figure 13). Regardless of income level, most Californians do not receive any or enough legal help for problems either with a substantial or lesser impact.
Figure 13. The Justice Gap: Percent of Problems for Which Californians Do Not Receive Any or Enough Legal Help
Note: Results reflect percent of problems. Problems with substantial impact are problems impacting respondents “very much” or “severely.” Number of problems vary as follows: all problems (24,297); problems with substantial impact (8,183); problems with less impact (16,114). Data drawn from figure 5A in the 2024 NORC report.
Figure 14. Percent of Problems for Which Californians Seek and Receive Legal Help by Problem Type
*Small base size
Note: This analysis is based on problems and the figure was derived from figures 4C and 5C in the 2024 NORC report.
Californians seek legal assistance for only a small fraction—approximately one in 10—of consumer and health care problems.
As noted above, the two most common types of civil legal problems among California households are related to consumer issues and health care. Analyses of the three consumer problems added to the survey in response to stakeholder feedback show that nearly half of California households had their personal information compromised in the last year. Given the high prevalence of these issues, an important question follows: To what extent do Californians seek and receive legal help for these problems?
Figure 14 displays the percent of problems for which Californians seek and receive legal help by problem. Although consumer and health care problems were the most prevalent legal issues, they seek legal help for approximately one in 10 of these problems and receive legal help for an even smaller share. Californians sought legal help for just one in five problems related to compromised personal information and received legal help for just 14 percent.
As noted in figure 2 above, 9 percent of California households experienced a problem related to immigration. However, immigration problems are the most common type of problem for which Californians seek legal help, followed by personal injury and family and safety. Figure 14 also highlights gaps between seeking and receiving legal assistance across different areas of need. In the case of immigration problems, although Californians sought legal help for more than half of their immigration-related problems, they received legal help for just 40 percent, underscoring potential challenges in accessing services even among those who actively pursue assistance. This gap is highest among personal injury problems, where individuals sought legal help for 50 percent of those problems but received help for just one-third.
Californians who cannot get all the help they need from a lawyer or legal professional take additional steps to resolve their problems.
Survey respondents who sought help from a lawyer or other legal professional but did not receive the help they wanted were asked, “Since you didn’t get all the legal help you wanted from a lawyer or legal professional, what did you do to try to solve the problem?” Californians attempted to solve 34 percent of their problems by looking online for legal information. Additionally, they contacted an alternative source of help or searched for another lawyer for about a quarter of their problems, attempted to resolve the problem on their own or sought legal help in other ways for about a fifth of their problems, and did not attempt any action for 15 percent of their problems.
✅ The Justice Gap
Regions: The justice gap is similar across most California regions, with about eight in 10 residents not receiving any or enough legal help for their substantial civil legal issues. However, residents of the North Coast region do not receive any or enough legal help for nine in 10 of substantial legal issues, and residents of Orange County and Northern San Joaquin Valley do not receive enough legal help for six in 10 substantial legal issues.
Special focus groups: People with high housing costs did not receive enough legal help for 84 percent of substantial problems.
How California compares with the nation: A higher share of lowest-income Americans than lowest-income Californians do not receive any or enough legal help: Similar to lowest-income Americans, lowest-income Californians do not receive any or enough legal help for the vast majority of the civil legal problems that substantially impact them. However, a higher share of lowest-income Americans (nine in 10) than lowest-income Californians (eight in 10) do not receive sufficient legal help for civil legal problems that substantially impact them.
BARRIERS TO SEEKING AND RECEIVING LEGAL HELP
The NORC survey provides key information on multiple types of barriers to seeking and receiving legal help:
Knowledge barriers: The extent to which Californians know that legal professionals can help resolve the types of civil legal problems explored in this survey.
Attitudinal barriers: Californians’ beliefs about the civil legal system.
Cost barriers: Californians’ real or perceived cost of receiving legal help.
Knowledge Barriers
Most Californians are unaware that lawyers or other legal professionals can help resolve many of the everyday civil legal problems they face.
For each of their civil legal problems identified, survey respondents were asked, “In your opinion, is this a type of problem that a lawyer or other legal professional could help resolve?” The share of Californians who do not believe that lawyers or other legal professionals can help resolve their civil legal problems does not vary by income group (see figure 15). Regardless of income, Californians do not think that lawyers or other legal professionals could help them solve their problems (39 to 41 percent of problems). However, the share of Californians who are unsure varies by income. California’s lowest-income individuals are not sure if lawyers or legal professionals can help nearly one in three of their problems, compared with one in four for the highest-income individuals. The belief that lawyers or other legal professionals could help also varies according to income: Lowest-income Californians believe lawyers and other legal professionals could help with only 29 percent of their problems, compared to high-income Californians, who believe lawyers and legal professionals could help with 39 percent of their problems.
Figure 15. Percent of Problems Californians Believe a Lawyer or Other Legal Professional Could Help Resolve
Note: This analysis is based on problems (Overall n=24,297 | Lowest-income n=6,967 | Low-income n=6,201 | Middle-income 6,523 | High-income n=4,606 ) and was based on figure 5H in the 2024 NORC report.
Attitudinal Barriers
Lowest-income Californians are more likely to have uncertain or negative perceptions of the civil legal system than Californians in higher income categories.
Confidence in the civil legal system varies by income (see figure 16). Only 44 percent of lowest-income Californians believe the civil legal system can help people like them solve important legal problems, compared to about half of low- and middle-income Californians and 60 percent of high-income Californians. More are unsure or indifferent that the system can help them solve important legal problems than believe it cannot, suggesting that Californians’ faith in or lack of understanding of the system may prevent them from engaging in it when they have a civil legal problem.
Across all income groups, there is a lack of consensus regarding the fairness of the civil legal system. Only about three in 10 of Californians in the lowest-income group think the system treats people like them fairly. In contrast, about four in 10 of low- and middle-income Californians and nearly half (49 percent) of high-income Californians think the same. Among lowest-income Californians, far more are unsure or indifferent about the system’s fairness than believe people like them are treated fairly, while the opposite is true among high-income Californians. Among low- and middle-income Californians, about equal shares believe that the system treats people like them fairly or say they are unsure or indifferent.
Californians are most positive about the system protecting and enforcing their rights. Overall, 55 percent think people like them are able to use the civil legal system to protect and enforce rights, but divisions remain by income. Only 47 percent of lowest-income Californians think so, compared to 63 percent of high-income Californians. About half of low- and middle-income Californians agree.
Figure 16. Californians’ Attitudes about the U.S. Civil Legal System
Note: This analysis is based on individuals (Overall n=6,630 | Lowest-income n=1,576 | Low-income n=1,495 | Middle-income 1,501 | High-income n=1,758 ) and is drawn from figure 5l in the 2024 NORC report.
Cost Barriers
Just six in 10 Californians are confident they could find an affordable lawyer or legal professional if they needed help with a serious legal problem.
The survey asked respondents how confident they were that they could find a lawyer or other legal professional they could afford if they needed help with a serious civil legal problem, such as preventing eviction, foreclosure, or the loss of custody of a child. About half of lowest-income Californians are at least somewhat confident that they could find a lawyer or other legal professional they could afford, while six in 10 low- and middle-income Californians and seven in 10 high-income Californians say the same. These results suggest that the perception of high costs is a further barrier to seeking help (see figure 17).
Figure 17. Percent of Californians Who Are Confident in Their Ability to Find a Lawyer or Legal Professional They Can Afford
Note: This analysis is based on individuals (Overall n=6,630 | Lowest-income n=1,576 | Low-income n=1,495 | Middle-income 1,501 | High-income n=1,758 ) and is drawn from figure 5J in the 2024 NORC report.
Californians report that for most of their legal problems, they are either unsure how much they would be willing to pay to speak to a lawyer or would only have been willing to go to a lawyer if they didn’t have to pay up front.
Respondents who reported that they did not talk to a lawyer about their civil legal problem(s) were asked, “How much would you have been willing to pay to speak to a lawyer (if this was the lowest rate you could find) for one hour to learn about your options for solving your problem?”[10] The results show that Californians do not know how much they would be willing to pay to speak to a lawyer to learn about their options for nearly half of their civil legal problems. Additionally, for about four in 10 of their civil legal problems they did not speak to a lawyer about, they would only be willing to go to a lawyer if they didn’t have to pay anything up front. For the problems Californians are willing to pay to speak to a lawyer about, they are willing to spend $153 per hour on average. In California, attorney hourly rates average $391 overall, with rates ranging from $181 to $502 depending on practice area.[11]
Additional Barriers
Californians who do not seek legal help decide to deal with one in three problems on their own.
Respondents who reported that they did not talk to a lawyer or other legal professional about their civil legal problems were asked, “Why haven’t you talked to a lawyer or other legal professional about this problem?” Of the problems for which Californians do not seek legal help, they choose not to do so for about three in 10 because they decide to resolve the problem on their own (see figure 18). Additionally, they do not seek legal help for about a quarter because they are either worried about cost or do not think the problem is serious enough. Notably, they choose not to seek legal assistance for about a fifth because they do not think a legal professional could help.
Figure 18: Percent of Problems for Which Californians Do Not Seek Legal Help by Reason Cited
Note: Results reflect problems (N = 9,331) and is based on figure 5K in the 2024 NORC report.
Californians report that they do not receive all the legal help they want for one in five problems they seek help for due to the expense of ongoing costs.
Californians who do not receive any or as much legal help as they wanted were asked, “Why haven’t you gotten all the legal help you wanted?” They responded that they are not able to receive all the help they want for about one in five of the problems they seek help for, due to it being too expensive to continue seeking help (see figure 19). Other reasons include being unable to find a lawyer or other legal professional to take their case, their cases are ongoing, and not having enough time to follow up.
Figure 19: Percent of Problems for Which Californians Do Not Receive All the Legal Help They Want by Reason Cited
Note: Results reflect problems (N = 1,102) and is based on figure 5L in the 2024 NORC report.
✅ How California Compares With The Nation
- About 4 in 10 lowest-income Americans and Californians do not believe that lawyers or legal professionals can help resolve many of their civil legal problems.
- Lowest-income Americans and Californians have similar perceptions regarding the fairness of the civil legal system and its ability to help them solve important problems. However lowest-income Californians are more likely than lowest-income Americans to believe that people like them can use the system to protect and enforce their rights.
CONCLUSION
The civil justice gap in California remains wide and persistent. Californians’ civil legal needs appear to be growing: In 2019, just over half of households experienced a civil legal problem in the prior year, but today, seven in 10 reports at least one such problem, with households experiencing an average of six problems each. Consumer and health care issues were the most common problems across all income groups. Critically, one in four households faced civil legal problems that substantially impacted their financial, physical, mental, or relational well-being—burdens felt most acutely among California’s lowest-income households.
Yet, despite this growing need, help remains out of reach for most. Most Californians still do not seek legal assistance, even for problems that significantly impact their lives. When Californians speak to lawyers, they are told they have a valid case and should pursue legal action for one in three of their problems—and for one in five, they are told their case is valid but not financially worthwhile for the lawyer to pursue.
Californians continue to receive no or insufficient help for 85 percent of their civil legal problems overall—a figure virtually unchanged from five years ago. The gap persists even for substantial problems, with 77 percent remaining unresolved. Despite the widespread nature of consumer and health care issues, Californians seek legal help for only one in 10 of these problems.
Barriers are both practical and perceptual: Californians believe a lawyer could resolve only one-third of their problems, and concerns about affordability remain high, especially among lower-income households. These findings show that California’s civil justice gap is enduring.