Pro bono.

• Author: Salerno, Gerald T.
• Position: Letters - Letter to the editor

Based on statistics where sources are not quoted, even generally, Mr. Coleman states that 12 percent or less of the low-income population has access to the courts ("Take One Case (And I Know You'll Be Back for More)," Nov. 2014 President's Page). He also states that "this is clearly a problem society must solve" and calls on Florida lawyers to take cases for free. In my humble opinion, this is a problem for the legislature and our elected officials to solve, that is, if the voters of Florida agree.

For 23 years, I have been a lawyer, and this is my 19th year as a solo practitioner handling criminal and family law cases. Most of my clients have a household income of less than $50,000 and almost everyone is on a payment plan for legal services with some retainers starting as low as $500. On almost every single case, getting paid in full for the agreed amount is more difficult than the actual legal work and court appearances. There were five law schools when I graduated in 1992 and today Florida has 11 law schools. There is so much competition out there that clients are shopping around for a lawyer the way they would for a flat screen television. Prices are more competitive than ever.

Many of my cases have involuntary pro bono aspects to them. A client will not arrive with the final payment when the case is set for a plea. Monthly payments are not for the full amount or are late...