We had the chance to talk about our justice bus projects on LSC’s Talk Justice Podcast, which aired in May 2026. April Guillote, our Communications Manager, joined Brian from Oklahoma Indian Legal Services and Jason from Bay Area Legal Services for the conversation. You can listen to the episode here.

Our first bus, a smaller RV-style vehicle, arrived in November 2022. We wrapped it with our logo and a QR code that links straight to our disaster recovery page. The mobile unit has workstations, a printer, several screens, satellite internet, and a generator. We were ready to connect with people in our service area and meet clients wherever they are.

We focused on finding disaster survivors who were displaced by Hurricanes Laura and Delta. We started a brand awareness campaign and held outreach events in parishes directly affected in Louisiana, west of the Mississippi River. Our service area is large and rural, and legal resources are limited. Some parishes have fewer than 10 attorneys and are more than 45 minutes from legal aid. Our 27 case handlers serve over 89,000 eligible residents in 17 parishes. The mobile units help us reach these clients and provide important assistance and education in remote areas.

Deployment to disaster areas

Some survivors could not prove they owned their homes, which is needed to get help from FEMA or Restore LA. Our mobile unit gave residents direct access to civil legal services, letting them handle important legal matters privately on the bus with a paralegal and an attorney. Being close to FEMA representatives helped us mediate for our clients. Besides legal services, we connected people to local housing, public benefits, and other legal needs not related to the disaster. About 1,750 survivors visited the FEMA DRC between September and November, meeting with the bus and disaster unit each week, and received many resources to help them recover. Many clients and community members said they felt more hopeful because legal services were available. What we learned from Francine showed us how important a mobile unit is for our rural service areas.

Many of our clients need help with estate succession so they can apply for relief and start recovering. In Louisiana, home title issues are common. Members of low-income families may share ownership of a home inherited from grandparents or parents, but they often do not complete probate or succession because it is expensive and complicated. This means they do not have a clear title to the home until a disaster happens. Without ownership, it is hard to get insurance money, loans, and other help.

We helped an elderly client who was facing foreclosure after missing $6,000 in payments. His wife had died without a will, and both their names were on a $10,000 insurance claim from Hurricane Delta. He could not access the money and was at risk of losing his home. We stepped in, stopped the foreclosure, and completed a succession to transfer ownership. This allowed the insurance company to release the funds. Our client paid off his mortgage and kept his home.

What started as a crisis ended in stability, dignity, and peace of mind thanks to coordinated legal advocacy and persistence. Because of these cases and our outreach work, we now focus on teaching communities about prevention strategies, like making wills and understanding the succession process, to lessen the impact of future disasters.

Louisiana often faces hurricanes that affect different regions. Our partner, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services (SLLS), serves 22 parishes, including rural areas near Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Our executive directors worked together to better reach clients after disasters, knowing that coastal areas are affected in different ways. This teamwork helps us respond to the hardest-hit areas and use our resources more flexibly and efficiently.

By working together and sending the Justice Bus where it is needed most, we are committed to making justice more accessible and helping communities across the state become stronger. Even during a crisis, we want to make sure help is available and hope remains.