Disaster Legal Services (DLS) provides legal assistance to low-income individuals who, prior to or as a result of a disaster, are unable to secure legal services adequate to meet their disaster-related needs. When the President declares a major disaster, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, through an agreement with the Young Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association, provides free legal assistance to low income disaster survivors. Legal assistance includes counseling and advice, referral to appropriate sources of legal services and legal representation in non-fee-generating cases. Cases that may generate a fee are turned over to the local lawyer referral service. The legal assistance is provided by a range of participating attorneys, law firms, not-for-profit legal services providers, Legal Services Corporation recipients, state and local bar associations and pro bono organizations.

Local lawyers typically provide assistance such as:

• Help with insurance claims for doctor and hospital bills, loss of property, loss of life, etc.
• Drawing up new wills, powers of attorney and other legal documents lost during the disaster
• Help with home repair contracts and contractors
• Advice on problems with landlords