08/18/2026
⚖️ Rural Alabama has a lawyer shortage — Lawrence County is working to stay ahead of it
Lawrence County may not be facing a legal-services crisis today — but local attorneys are already looking several years ahead.
Local attorney Jerome Thompson, a member of the board of directors for Harvesters of Hope, says recent deaths and retirements have reduced the number of attorneys serving the county, while additional retirements are expected over the next five to seven years.
“Without a concentrated effort to attract new and younger attorneys to Lawrence County, our communities will suffer a lack of access to justice.”
That phrase — access to justice — can sound broad, but locally it means having someone nearby when a family needs help with a will, probate matter, adoption, divorce, custody case, property dispute, real-estate closing, business issue or another legal problem that can’t simply be handled online.
It also means keeping attorneys rooted in the community itself.
“Local attorneys not only live and contribute to the local economy. We also share a vested interest in the quality of life for all citizens,” Thompson said.
📍 A statewide problem with a local impact
Harvesters of Hope says 42 of Alabama’s 67 counties have one lawyer or fewer for every 1,000 residents, while 78% of the state’s attorneys are concentrated in just seven counties.
Rather than wait for that shortage to become more severe here, Thompson says Lawrence County is working on three different paths at once.
👨⚖️ Bringing younger attorneys into existing firms
The first effort is straightforward: encourage established local attorneys to bring younger lawyers into their practices.
That can help existing firms prepare for future retirements while giving new attorneys a chance to build experience, relationships and a client base in Lawrence County instead of starting somewhere else.
💼 Helping new attorneys establish a practice here
The second path involves Harvesters of Hope, which provides financial assistance and support to attorneys willing to practice in underserved communities.
That effort has already produced a local result.
Attorney Nic Cavender was recruited to practice in Moulton and now serves clients in areas including probate, adoption and real-estate law.
For a young attorney, choosing where to begin a career can involve significant financial risk. Helping offset some of those startup costs can make practicing in a rural county a more realistic option.
🎓 Showing local students that law can be a career
The third effort may take the longest to pay off, but it could ultimately be the most important.
Thompson says Lawrence County has begun a legal exploration program in collaboration with the Lawrence County Board of Education and local judges Judge Waldrep, Judge Terry and Judge Dutton.
The program introduces 11th- and 12th-grade students to the court system and gives them a closer look at what attorneys and judges actually do.
The goal is not simply to teach students how a courtroom works. It is to help local students see law as a possible career before they leave Lawrence County for college.
And Thompson says the program is already identifying students who may someday return.
“In the first two years of the program, we’ve identified approximately five to seven brilliant minds who are considering law school and returning to their home community to add value to the lives of others.”
That creates a much longer-term strategy than simply recruiting someone from outside the county.
A student who grows up here already knows the community, has family and personal connections here, and may have a stronger reason to return after completing college and law school.
🔄 Working on three timelines at once
Lawrence County’s approach is essentially this:
bring younger attorneys in now, help them build sustainable careers here, and encourage local students to become the next generation of Lawrence County attorneys.
For Thompson, the concern is what happens if that work doesn’t happen soon enough.
As more attorneys retire, residents could eventually face fewer choices, longer waits and more trips outside Lawrence County for legal help. The local court system could also have a smaller pool of experienced attorneys available to eventually serve in roles such as prosecutors and judges.
The goal is to prevent that gap before it becomes a much bigger problem.
And if even a few of the students now being introduced to the legal system eventually return home to practice, the effort could shape access to legal services in Lawrence County for decades to come.
How important is it to you to have professional services like attorneys available right here in Lawrence County?
