Public Resources
Both giving back to the community and good corporate citizenship are important to the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association. KCMBA offers several services to the general public to assist in some of their legal needs and questions.
KC LAWYER FINDER
Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association has launched KC Lawyer Finder, a proprietary search engine that will easily allow the public to find a local Kansas City attorney by location or by a specific specialty. To access the search engine, head to kclawyerfinder.com and select which search you'd like to use.
Additional Resources:
In Missouri -
The Missouri Bar maintains a Legal Resource phone line at (573) 636-3635, which contains information about various legal resources available to the public.
For more information please visit the Missouri Bar website.
If you are unable to afford attorney fees and are seeking legal assistance, please contact Legal Aid Western Missouri at (816) 474-6750. Please be aware that Legal Aid has limited resources and may not be able to accept your case based on circumstances and availability of attorneys.
MissouriLawyersHelp.org contains a free lawyer search feature, a listing of agencies that may provide discounted or pro bono services, as well as information on various legal topics and other public resources.
Missouri.FreeLegalAnswers.org is a service for low-income Missourians who feel they cannot afford a lawyer to get free legal advice about non-criminal problems from volunteer lawyers. It is a secure, confidential website where Missouri citizens can ask a lawyer up to three legal questions per year about non-criminal legal matters. Volunteer lawyers licensed to practice law in Missouri respond to submitted questions through the website providing information and basic legal advice without any expectation of long-term representation. No fee is charged to Missouri citizens who are financially eligible to use this service.
In Kansas -
Contact the Kansas Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service at www.ksbar.org/lawyer. For those who need assistance or do not have access to the internet, please call 785-861-8838.
FEE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Please direct your fee dispute complaint against an attorney to one of the following offices, depending on location:
In Wichita, Kansas:
Fee Dispute Program
Wichita Bar Association
Attn: Fee Dispute
255 N. Market, Suite 200
Wichita, KS 67202-2023
In Missouri:
Fee Dispute Resolution Program
The Missouri Bar
P.O. Box 119
Jefferson City, MO 65102
PROJECT PRO BONO
KCMBA is partnering with Legal Aid of Western Missouri to help increase pro bono legal work in the Kansas City area through a new initiative called “Project Pro Bono.” By publishing the number of pro bono hours performed quarterly by participating firms and highlighting pro bono work done by our members, KCMBA hopes to encourage more attorneys in the Kansas City area to provide pro bono legal services to low-income individuals, families, and institutions. If you are interested in receiving legal services from Project Pro Bono, please call (816) 474-6750. Please be aware that Legal Aid has limited resources and may not be able to accept your case based on circumstances and availability of attorneys.
For more information about Project Pro bono, click here.
JUDICIAL EVALUATIONS
In order to encourage transparency and accountability in the judicial system, KCMBA partners with the Missouri Bar during election years to conduct performance evaluations of merit-selected judges that are standing in retention elections. By publicizing the results of the evaluations, KCMBA hopes to help Missouri voters increase their understanding of the Missouri judicial system and make informed voting decisions.
ASK-A-LAWYER TELETHON
Each April, KCMBA partners with a local news outlet to hold a telethon in which members of the public may call a hotline to receive free legal guidance from volunteers from KCMBA’s Young Lawyers Section. Every year, Ask-A-Lawyer receives nearly 1,000 calls, and attorneys answer legal questions relating to over 15 different practice areas.
For more information about Ask-A-Lawyer, click here.
Glossary:
Click the link below to view a glossary of common legal terms from the United States Courts.
Glossary of Legal Terms
Links:
Links to the websites of various federal courts and national law-related organizations are listed below. For links to the websites of bar associations, law schools, counties and municipalities, and other legal organizations in Kansas and Missouri, see the page for each individual state.
FEDERAL COURTS
United States Supreme Court
United States Tax Court
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
United States Department of Justice
United States Federal Government Agencies Directory
LEGAL ASSOCIATIONS
American Bar Association
American Judges Association
National Bar Association
Kansas Courts & Offices:
FEDERAL COURTS
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
United States District Court for the District of Kansas
STATE COURTS
Supreme Court of Kansas
Kansas Court of Appeals
DISTRICT COURTS
Johnson County District Court
LAW SCHOOLS
University of Kansas School of Law
Washburn University School of Law
BAR ASSOCIATIONS AND LEGAL ORGANIZATIONS
Kansas Bar Association
Kansas Lawyers Assistance Program (KALAP)
GOVERNMENT OFFICES
Office of the Disciplinary Administrator
Kansas Attorney General’s Office
Governor’s Office
Kansas Secretary of State
Kansas Legislature
State of Kansas
COUNTIES
Johnson County
Wyandotte County
MUNICIPALITIES
Bonner Springs
Kansas City
Leawood
Lenexa
Merriam
Olathe
Overland Park
Shawnee
Missouri Courts & Offices:
FEDERAL COURTS
United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
STATE COURTS
Supreme Court of Missouri
Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District
MIssouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District
MIssouri Court of Appeals, Southern District
CIRCUIT COURTS
6th Judicial Circuit Court, Platte County
7th Judicial Circuit Court, Clay County
8th Judicial Circuit Court, Ray County
15th Judicial Circuit Court, Lafayette County
16th Judicial Circuit Couty, Jackson County
17th Judicial Circuit Court, Cass County
17th Judicial Circuit Court, Johnson County
LAW SCHOOLS
University of MIssouri- Kansas City School of Law
University of Missouri- Columbia School of Law
BAR ASSOCIATIONS AND LEGAL ORGANIZATIONS
Missouri Bar Association
Jackson County Law Library
Missouri Lawyers Assistance Program (MOLAP)
GOVERNMENT OFFICES
Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel
Missouri Attorney General’s Office
MIssouri General Assembly
Governor’s Office
Missouri Secretary of State
Missouri House of Representatives
Missouri Senate
State of Missouri
COUNTIES
Platte County
Clay County
Ray County
Lafayette County
Jackson County
Cass County
Johnson County
MUNICIPALITIES
Blue Springs
Concordia
Excelsior Springs
Higginsville
Independence
Kansas City
Kearney
Knob Noster
Lee’s Summit
Lexington
Liberty
North Kansas City
Parkville
Platte City
Richmond
FAQs
I am having some legal issues. Can you answer a few questions for me?
We do not have attorneys on staff and are therefore unauthorized to provide any legal advice or guidance. To make sure your questions are answered accurately, please contact an attorney.
I need to speak to an attorney, but I don’t know where to find one. Can you refer me to one?
We currently do not have a lawyer referral service and are unable to refer you to a lawyer. If you are looking for an attorney who is licensed to practice in Kansas, please call the Kansas Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service at 1-800-928-3111 or visit the Kansas Bar website for more information. If you are looking for an attorney in Missouri, please call the Missouri Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service at (573) 635-4128* or visit the Missouri Bar website. While the Missouri Bar is located in Jefferson City, its staff will be able to help you find a lawyer in the greater Kansas City area for a fee of $50.00.
If you are unable to reach these services, we recommend you consult a phone book or perform an internet search for an attorney using a search engine such as Google, Yahoo, or Bing.
*Unfortunately, there is currently no toll-free number for this service.
If you are not attorneys, what does your organization do?
The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association is a professional organization for attorneys in the Kansas City area. In order to help local attorneys improve their practice and strengthen their presence in the legal community, we offer monthly networking events, continuing education programs, and a variety of other benefits. Our staff, which is made up of non-attorneys, is charged with the planning and execution of these programs. Though local attorneys frequently participate in our programs, they are not employees of our organization and do not work in our offices.
I need an attorney, but I cannot afford to hire one. Do you know any lawyers who might be willing to take my case pro bono?
Legal Aid of Western Missouri provides essential legal services to low-income individuals who are unable to afford attorneys’ fees. Legal Aid can be reached by phone at (816) 474-6750. Please be aware that Legal Aid has limited resources and may not be able to accept your case based on circumstances and/or availability of attorneys.
If you have already contacted Legal Aid, and they are unable to assist you, please contact the Kansas Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service at 1-800-928-3111 or the Missouri Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service at (573) 635-4128, and inform them of your financial situation. Some attorneys are willing to accept cases on a contingency basis and may agree to waive hourly fees in some circumstances.
I have the name of an attorney, but I cannot find his/her contact information. Can you give me his/her phone number?
If you already have the name of a particular attorney practicing in the Kansas City area, we are happy to give you his or her office phone number, provided that he or she is in our attorney database. If we do not have record of the attorney, we recommend that you call the Kansas Bar at (785) 234-5696 or the Missouri Bar at (573) 635-4128, depending on the state in which the attorney practices.
How do I file a complaint against an attorney?
If you wish to dispute a fee that your attorney has charged you, you may file your complaint with the Fee Dispute Resolution Program at The Missouri Bar.
If you have a complaint regarding an attorney’s ethical conduct, please contact the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel at (573) 635-7400 in Missouri, or the Office of the Disciplinary Administrator at (785) 296-2586 in Kansas.
How can I find out if an attorney has a legitimate practice and/or is in good standing with the Bar?
In Missouri, the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel maintains records of disciplinary information of attorneys licensed to practice in the state of Missouri. To inquire about an attorney, please contact the OCDC at (573) 635-7400.
In Kansas, contact the Office of the Disciplinary Administrator at (785) 296-2586.
For additional questions, please call KCMBA at (816) 474-4322 or e-mail [email protected].