Acronym Soup (Places to Deepen Your Knowledge of Legal Aid)
NTAP is acting as the legal aid community's clearinghouse on all technology training, and helps coordinate tech trainings at national conferences held by two major support centers: National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA), Legal Services Corporation (LSC), and American Bar Association's Equal Justice Conference sessions. However, it is important to know who these other entities are as they play a bigger role in the support of the delivery of legal services. Here is some information on these other resources and entities to whom you can look to for information that will deepen your understanding of the issues facing legal aid programs today (not necessarily technology related, but can include them):
National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA)
NLADA is the oldest and largest national, nonprofit membership association that provides resources for legal aid and defender programs, as well as individual advocates. They usally sponsor two national conferences (ABA Equal Justice and NLADA Annual) that include (among many other things) training and workshops on poverty law technology issues. They maintain a calendar of national events.
Management Information Exchange (MIE)
MIE is a nonprofit organization that provides support to poverty law managers. They offer a training schedule of educational opportunities for the legal aid community.
Legal Services Corporation TIG Conference
The annual Technology Initiative Grant (TIG) Conference, sponsored by the LSC, provides valuable resources targeted to the technology needs of the poverty law community. This is the only national in person event dedicated soley to poverty law technology issues. It has been directed to recipients of TIG awards but is open to non-TIG recipients as well.
Note: A few regions (CORT and New England Regional Training Consortium) and more states offer poverty law tech training and conferences. Be sure to check with the legal aid state support organization in your state for details on the poverty law tech trainings available in your area.