The Missouri Bar - Loan Repayment Assistance Program

THE MISSOURI BAR LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
FOR PUBLIC INTEREST ATTORNEYS

Program Description Form

Many people enter law school with a commitment to access to justice, but upon graduation, they find that they must forego their public interest aspirations, in light of their huge law school debt. According to a 2003 ABA report, law school tuition has more than doubled over the past decade, leaving law school graduates saddled with a nationwide average educational debt of more than $80,000.

As costs, caseloads, and debt continue to increase, large debt burdens carried by law graduates have made it increasingly difficult for public interest and public sector employers to recruit and retain attorneys. As a result, low-income people and communities, already vastly under-served, may receive even less representation.

Loan repayment assistance programs are an important means to address this problem. These programs cover, or at least defray, the educational debt payments of graduates engaged in qualifying public service. In 2004, The Missouri Bar and The Missouri Bar Foundation launched such a program, The Missouri Bar Loan Repayment Assistance Program (The Missouri Bar LRAP).

The Missouri Bar LRAP expects to provide semi-annual awards of up to $2,000 to new lawyers entering public service, and to attorneys currently in public service. The Missouri Bar LRAP Advisory Board, which consists of lawyers from The Missouri Bar Board of Governors, The Missouri Bar Foundation Trustees, and The Missouri Bar Young Lawyers' Section, will make awards based on numerous factors including: the nature and location of employment, total income, assets, total debt, dependents, other loan repayment assistance available, educational or professional achievements and other special circumstances.

Introduction

Public service attorneys play a critical role in society, yet law school loan debt can make such positions unaffordable. To encourage new lawyers to pursue public service careers, and to help experienced lawyers stay in public service careers, The Missouri Bar and The Missouri Bar Foundation have teamed up to create The Missouri Bar Loan Repayment Assistance Program (The Missouri Bar LRAP). While a wide range of positions qualify for awards, until funding is expanded, priority will be given to attorneys working for the Missouri State Public Defender System, criminal prosecutors, and legal services attorneys. Recipients will receive forgivable loans to help defray law school loan debt. If the recipient remains in qualifying employment for a specified period (six months), the loan will be forgiven.

Click here for an application.

Eligibility

To be eligible for an award, an applicant must meet the criteria set forth below. The Missouri Bar LRAP Advisory Board will make awards based on numerous factors, including but not limited to: the nature and location of employment, total income, assets, total debt, dependents, other loan repayment assistance available, educational or professional achievements and other special circumstances.

1. Law Degree and Bar Admission. An applicant must have earned a JD from an ABA approved law school within the last three years; have been admitted to The Missouri Bar; and be a member in good standing. An applicant may apply for an award while waiting to take the bar exam, while awaiting admission to The Missouri Bar or six months prior to their anticipated graduation from a law school approved by the ABA if they have received an offer of qualifying employment, but will not receive an award until admitted to The Missouri Bar.

2. Qualifying Employment. An applicant must be employed to work at least 35 hours per week in the state of Missouri in a law-related position by one of the entities set forth below:

non-profits (IRS defined sections 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(5) and 501(c)(6)) whose primary function is to provide legal advice or representation based on financial eligibility criteria;
local, state, or federal governments; and
certain positions within court systems.

The following are not deemed qualifying employment:

positions at for-profit entities;
temporary judicial clerkships;
contract public defenders;
attorneys providing reduced fee legal representation to low income or disadvantaged individuals or populations through contracts with Qualifying Organizations; and
attorneys working as independent contractors or through law firm contracts

3. Educational Debt. Debt must have been incurred through institutional sources to pursue law school or joint legal/graduate school degrees. Qualifying debt includes Stafford, Perkins and other loans approved by law school financial aid offices. Debt owed to family or non-institutional sources does not qualify. An applicant who is in default, forbearance, or deferment status on a loan is eligible to apply. However, applicants may not receive awards while a loan is in default, forbearance or deferment status. Applicants may receive awards for private loans while subsidized federal loans are in deferment or forbearance status, but will only receive contributions for the private loans in payment status.

4. Salary Limitations. An applicant must have an adjusted gross income for The Missouri Bar LRAP purposes at or below $45,999.

Guidelines

1. Loan Awards. Awards of up to $4,000 per year will be made and disbursed semi-annually. Recipients will remain responsible for satisfying underlying debt. No recipient will receive an award greater than the amount of debt due for the six month period in which the loan is made. Awards are not automatically renewed; recipients must apply each year awards are offered. Recipients may apply for renewal benefits on a semi-annual basis for five (5) years after entry into the program or until the year in which the educational loans are repaid in full, whichever occurs first. The receipt of benefits in one grant cycle is not a guarantee of receiving benefits in subsequent cycles.

2. Loan Forgiveness. Awards are provided in the form of semiannual forgivable loans. These loans are not intended to be tax-free to recipients. Recipients will receive an IRS Form 1099 from The Missouri Bar LRAP for the year in which they receive the award. Each loan is approved separately prior to issuance. Loans will be forgiven following each calendar half-year for which the loan was received, provided the recipient provides proof he or she has remained in Qualifying Employment through the half-year and shows proof that the LRAP loan was used to repay his or her Qualifying Student Loans. Recipients of awards not yet forgiven who become ineligible will be responsible for loan repayment.

3. Interest. Interest will not accrue on the award while the recipient is an active participant in the program. If the recipient subsequently becomes ineligible, repayment will begin immediately, at an annual rate of 6.95% on a 5-year amortization for any loans that have not been forgiven.

4. Participant Obligations. Each recipient must execute a promissory note; keep all underlying educational debt current; and provide periodic documentation and verification of continued eligibility as required by the The Missouri Bar LRAP. Upon becoming ineligible, a recipient must immediately notify The Missouri Bar LRAP Program Coordinator.

Application Process

To be considered for an award, applicants must submit:

1 A signed, complete copy of this Program Description (not just the certification page);
1 A current resume;
1 A signed, completed copy of the Application;
1 Applicant Employment Certification Form;
1 Income Information Worksheet;
1 Loan Indebtedness Worksheet;
1 Payment information sheet or payment coupon from your lender that includes monthly payment amount and account number;
1 Asset Worksheet;
1 Copy of your most recent federal income tax return (unless you were not required by law to submit federal income tax return);
1 Power of Attorney Form;
1 Promissory Note Agreement;
1 Applicant's signed acknowledgment of duty to report changes in financial status;
1 Spouse's Employment Certification Form, if applicable; and
1 Spouse's Loan Indebtedness Worksheet, if applicable.

The Missouri Bar LRAP will not consider an application until all required forms are received. The applicant bears the responsibility of submitting all required documentation, and ensuring that the employer and lender submit forms when required. The applicant must provide any clarifying or supplemental information requested by the The Missouri Bar LRAP.

Please mail or deliver (do not fax or e-mail) your application to:

The Missouri Bar LRAP
c/o Stephen Murrell, Program Coordinator
P.O. Box 119
Jefferson City, MO 65102-0119

Program Applicants, Click Here.