More and more people qualify for legal aid; is mandatory pro-bono an answer to the crisis?

The Census Bureau's recently released a report that details that nearly 57 million Americans now qualify for civil legal assistance from programs funded by the federal Legal Services Corporation (LSC). That's the number of Americans who, in 2009, were at or below 125 percent of the federal poverty level threshold, an income ceiling of $27,563 a year for a family of four. This is an increase of 3 million from 2008.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that the Mississippi Supreme Court is considering a proposed rule to require lawyers in the state to provide at least 20 hours of pro bono work.

But Mississippi lawyers are reportedly not happy that altruism may be forced upon them, the Clarion-Ledger reports.

Read the full sotry (with links to more) in the Wall Street Journal Law Blog. Also, click here to see Above the Law’s take on the proposed rule.