"Call My Lawyer!" Legal Programs as Essential

Tools for Public Policy

D. Douglas BlankeKathleen Hoke DachilleMikelle D. RobinsonMindy Sweeney Funded by:

““I LAWYERS!”

Legal Technical Assistance:

A Critical Componentof Any ComprehensiveTobacco Control Program

WHY?

Comprehensive tobacco control programs are about changing community norms.

Changing norms means changing public and private policies.

Policy change is fraught with legal issues.

Tobacco companies and their allies exploit any legal loophole or vulnerability.

It’s about prevention. Legal technical assistance programs help advocates avoid pitfalls and stay out of trouble.

Inadvertent legal errors can result in policy and program setbacks, years of delay and expensive litigation.

Legal Technical Assistance Supports Policy Change Efforts By:

Building capacity Untangling issues Clarifying choices Promoting policy development

Legal Technical Assistance Supports Policy Change Efforts By:

Providing strategic guidance Helping prevent litigation when

possible Helping support litigation when

necessary

What Do Legal Programs Do?

Draft legislation and develop model legislation.

Support litigation. Provide individualized legal

consultation, support and strategic advice.

What Do Legal Programs Do?

Analyze opponents’ legal arguments and objections.

Provide research and analysis of key and emerging issues.

Train advocates and others on recurring legal issues.

What DON’T They Do?

Legal assistance programs do NOT provide legal advice or representation.

They do NOT represent advocates or governments in court.

Selected Areas of Focus: Smoke-free public places and

workplaces. Tobacco sales practices. Tobacco taxes. Needs of special populations (e.g.,

older people). Emerging issues: Internet sales,

product regulation.

Some States Have Made Legal Support An Integral Part of Their Tobacco

Control Programs

Arkansas California Maryland Massachusetts

Michigan Minnesota New Jersey

Until Your State Funds A Program, Is There

Anywhere to Turn?

TCLC: WHAT IS IT?

The Tobacco Control Legal Consortium

The Tobacco Control Legal Consortium

A new national network created to advance policy change by making legal expertise more readily available to the tobacco control community.

The Tobacco Control Legal Consortium

A response to demand for legal support in states without legal programs.

Grew out of informal collaboration among existing state legal centers, along with national tobacco control organizations and others.

Why A New National Consortium?

Most states provide no legal resources for tobacco control.

Lack of access to legal expertise is a primary impediment to development of effective new laws.

Mission:

To help make legal expertise an integral part of comprehensive tobacco control programs, in order to strengthen policy initiatives.

How? Building capacity: encouraging

expansion of legal resources to serve the tobacco control movement.

Direct legal assistance: within its resources, TCLC will provide a limited “safety net” of direct legal assistance.

Training: expanding the knowledge base.

Structure A network of existing legal programs. Small coordinating office at Tobacco

Law Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Draws on existing centers and other

legal experts to achieve economies of scale and leverage resources.

Capacity Limited budget: roughly comparable

to a one-state legal program. Staff of three, coordinating work by

the network. Not a substitute for local resources. “Lawyers of last resort.”

Priorities: Capacity Building

Encouraging additional states to provide legal expertise to support policy change.

Advising advocates and officials in five states on options for creating new legal programs.

Priorities: Direct Legal Support

Providing stopgap legal assistance and information.

Within available resources, supporting advocates and local counsel with research, strategic advice, sample materials and pleadings.

Filing “friend of the court” legal briefs in appropriate cases.

Priorities: Education and Outreach

Educational materials. Presentations and training. Seminars. Research and publication on

critical and emerging legal issues.

Doug BlankeExecutive DirectorWilliam Mitchell College of Law875 Summit AvenueSaint Paul, MN 55105(651)-290-7506tobaccolaw@wmitchell.eduwww.TCLConline.org (under construction)