American Bar Association Joins RingCentral for National Hotline for Pandemic, Disaster-Related Legal Needs

CHICAGO, Illinois, April 7 -- The American Bar Association issued the following news release:

To help meet the growing legal needs caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division has teamed up with RingCentral Inc. to a national hotline to connect the Disaster Legal Services Program (DLS) with those seeking civil legal services.

As with other national disasters, the COVID-19 public health emergency has dramatically increased the need for civil legal services. To answer that need, RingCentral is providing a toll-free hotline, 888-743-5749, to connect disaster survivors to legal assistance in every state and U.S. territory as the Young Lawyer Division's relief efforts are implemented.

"A national hotline adds tremendous value to the work already being done by the Disaster Legal Services Program," said ABA President Judy Perry Martinez. "A centralized, never-changing number means easy access for survivors and reduced administrative burden for our federal, state and local partners."

RingCentral's Contact Center Technology will greet the customer in either English or Spanish, and from there, voice commands will direct the caller to the appropriate state's DLS hotline.

The hotline has already been active routing calls from the recent tornadoes in Tennessee and earthquake in Puerto Rico. As of April 2, the hotline began routing COVID-19 related calls in Texas and Nebraska. Other states are expected to implement similar DLS hotlines for the coronavirus soon.

After natural disasters, DLS brings together volunteer attorneys and the state bar to work with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and local legal aid offices to provide legal assistance to disaster survivors. Disaster-related legal issues include landlord/tenant problems, insurance claims, FEMA claims and consumer issues such as securing government benefits and contractor fraud, among many others.

Since 2007, ABA YLD has responded to more than 193 declared disasters in 44 states and four U.S. territories.

RingCentral Inc. Copyright (c) is a leading provider of global enterprise cloud communications, collaboration and contact center solutions. The company provides unified voice, video meetings, team messaging, digital customer engagement and integrated contact center solutions for enterprises globally. RingCentral has headquarters in Belmont, California, and offices around the world. All rights reserved. RingCentral and the RingCentral logo are trademarks of RingCentral, Inc.

The ABA is the largest voluntary association of lawyers in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. View our privacy statement online. Follow the latest ABA news at www.americanbar.org/news and on Twitter @ABANews.