ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A “justice bus” will make its first stop Thursday at the Belmont County Courthouse to gather information about the area’s legal needs, with the goal of holding free legal sessions in the near future.

The program operators are also looking for local lawyers interested in volunteering for pro bono work.

Members of the public facing civil legal issues are invited to stop by from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. No legal advice will be given Thursday, but organizers hope to lay the groundwork for future consultations and to establish connections in the area.

“This is our first clinic in the area. It is actually more of an informational event for us to reach out to those who may be interested and maybe see what the legal needs of the community are,” Sophia Chang, pro bono director with the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation, said. “We do intend to come back on a regular basis to provide clinics in the future. … We plan to have to have attorneys available to provide actual legal consultation.”

Chang said they also hope to get word out to the public about what legal service they can provide.

“We won’t be asking about specific legal problems, but ‘What have you experienced? What do you know about people in your family or your neighborhood? What legal services do they need?’

“By being able to go out into a community this initial time, it will definitely help us understand what the needs are,” she said. “We will be coming back with a focused clinic on what we were able to identify as the biggest needs of the community.”

Chang said they expect to work on issues of family law, housing, and other needs.

“Depending on how much interest there is, we would either do a pre-registration model or appointments for the time we’re going to be there. There’s a walk-in model that we also do,” she said.

She said income requirements are in the range of 300 percent above the federal poverty level.

“It’s for low-income individuals,” she said.

“That’s a public service sponsored by the Ohio Bar Association,” Grace Hoffman, Lola attorney and member of the Belmont County Bar Association, said. She added the Belmont County Law Library is also sponsoring the program. “They will give advice on any civil legal matter.”

Hoffman added the mobile service will fill a valuable role.

“The Bar Association with Southeastern Ohio Legal Services and Grace Presbyterian Church does a free legal clinic, but since COVID that has been slowed down,” she said. “This bus has been traveling around to help people out. … Anything civil. Debtor/creditor issues, foreclosures, eviction, family law issues and anything else. … There’s a great need for pro bono legal help.”

For more information, visit ohiojustice.org or email help@ohiojustice.org.

The courthouse is located at 101 West Main St., St. Clairsville.