Nebraskans, Lawyers, & the Law: A Two-Year Report

In January 1979, the Nebraska State Bar Association and the University of Nebraska College of Law initiated a continuing research program designed to assess the extent and nature of legal problems facing Nebraskans, the role attorneys play in assisting the public in dealing with these problems, and the perceptions held by Nebraskans of attorneys and the legal system. The research program has been operational for two years, collecting data from Nebraska residents across the state through the use of a six-page, two-hundred-item questionnaire entitled Nebraskans, Lawyers, & the Law (NLL Questionnaire). The NLL Questionnaire was developed to examine the following areas: (1) the frequency of occurrence of specific types of problems in which legal help or advice could be sought; (2) the frequency of occasions in which legal assistance was actually sought for these problems; (3) the attitudes of Nebraskans on specific issues relating to the performance, ethics, and practices of attorneys; (4) the perceptions of Nebraskans as to the necessity and/or desirability of obtaining legal help in dealing with specific problem types; (5) the general frequency of attorney usage and satisfaction; (6) the manner in which clients choose attorneys; and (7) clients\u27 perceptions and estimations of attorney fees. In addition, the questionnaire solicited data regarding the issues of legal insurance, attorney advertising, and lawyer referral services. This article summarizes the general findings of the first two years of the project