About Us
About This Website
The Montana Crime Victim Help Website provides legal information, tools, and help finding resources to assist victims in the aftermath of a crime. This is provided by the Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA) and its MT Victim Legal Assistance Network (MT VLAN).
MLSA received one of three subawards from the National Crime Victim Law Institute (NCVLI) to use technology to increase legal access to rural crime victims through its Rural Crime Victim Access Project, a cooperative agreement with the Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime. The goal of Rural Crime Victim Access is to use technology to provide direct legal access to survivors in some of the most underserved areas of the state.
Do you have a crime victim resource or link you think we should add to this website? Use the Contact Us form and let us know, or send and email to vlan@mtlsa.org.
Learn more about the Montana Victim Legal Assistance Network
Apply Online
You can apply online with Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA) at www.mtlsa.org.
After you submit an online application, an MLSA staff member will contact you to schedule an
appointment to complete your application.
Apply By Phone
You can also call the MLSA HelpLine at (800) 666-6899 to talk with an MLSA staff member.
The HelpLine hours are limited.
If you do qualify for MLSA's help:
• We may schedule you an appointment to speak with an MLSA Advocate.
• We may give you written information about your legal rights.
• We may ask you to send us more information about your case.
• We may refer you to a volunteer attorney or a self-help law clinic.
• Everything you tell MLSA is kept private and confidential.
MT VLAN is a statewide civil legal assistance network that provides coordinated, comprehensive, and holistic wrap-around services to crime victims across the state. MT VLAN is a part of Montana Legal Services Association. By offering legal advice and representation, advocacy for victim’s rights and safety, and additional support and educational resources, MT VLAN ensures that victims of all types of crimes get the legal assistance they deserve.
MT VLAN provides legal help and supportive services to victims of crime. First implemented in 2016, MT VLAN is a statewide civil legal assistance network that provides coordinated, comprehensive, and holistic wrap-around services to crime victims across the state. Specifically, it offers civil legal advice and representation, advocacy for victim’s rights and safety, support and referrals, and access to legal information and resources to victims of crime, while also developing new online technology tools to assist victims and service providers.
MT VLAN is part of a demonstration project funded through by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Office for Victims of Crime (OVC). The Montana Board of Crime Control (MBCC) partnered with Montana Legal Services Association to develop a networked approach to provide holistic civil legal aid for crime victims. MT VLAN was launched in 2015 as one of ten demonstration projects throughout the nation with the goal of better understanding and addressing the co-existing and overlapping legal needs of crime victims.
MT VLAN is operated by MLSA, a non-profit civil legal aid organization that provides free legal information, advice, and representation to thousands of low income Montanans facing non-criminal, civil legal problems each year. Creating MT VLAN enabled MLSA to: (1) build a team of attorneys and victim navigators to provide much needed legal services to victims of crime and help guide them through the legal process; and (2) develop stronger partnerships among other service organizations in order to connect already existing victim services with newly available legal services offered by MLSA. As a result, MT VLAN has been able to improve referrals between service organizations and increase collaborative casehandling for victims of crime, allowing for a more comprehensive response to their needs.
Partners with the MT VLAN and MTCrimeVictimHelp.org web project include:
- National Crime Victim Law Institute
- US Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime
- Montana Department of Justice, Office for Victim Services
- Montana Board of Crime Control
- Montana Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
- University of Montana, Criminology Research Group
- Montana State Law Library
- Custer Network Against Domestic Abuse
- Fergus County Victim Witness Advocates
- Glasgow Victim Witness Advocates
- Red Lodge Domestic and Sexual Violence Services
MT VLAN can provide training and technical assistance to service providers on issues related to crime victim legal services and information. We can provide training on topics including, but not limited to:
- The Basics of Domestic & Sexual Violence
- The Basics of Elder Abuse
- Fraud, Scams, and Identity Theft – Protection and Recovery
- Advocate Privilege, Confidentiality, and Mandatory Reporting
- Trauma Informed Services
- Vicarious Trauma / Secondary Trauma
- Addressing Implicit Bias in Victim Services
- Developing Technology Tools to Help Victims of Crime
- Montana Legal Services Association – Program Overview and How To Refer Clients to MLSA
Contact us at vlan@mtlsa.org for more information.
