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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 27, 1984)
Monday, August 27, 1984/The Battalion/Page 5F tudents with legal problems helped by adviser By KARL SPENCE and JULIA NUNALEE Reporter B Students who have problems get ting their landlords to repair their apartments and students who are in Vouble with the law can find help on tampus through the Office of the Students’ Legal Adviser. People who seek lawyers’ services inay find themselves paying as much fas $100 for an hour’s consultation, Ibut such expenses can be avoided by Konsulting the students’ legal advi sor. B The office, at 359 Bizzell Hall iVest (845-5821), employes two full time attorneys who provide students and recognized student groups with legal services in matters such as con tracts, domestic relations, auto acci dents and insurance. Matthew T. Nancarrow, the chief counsel, advises students to contact the office when they first think they may have a legal problem. “We’re a good place to start,” he said. “We might not be able to finish a case, but we can steer them where they need to go.” Nancarrow said the office will an swer simple questions over the phone. For more involved problems. students make appointments to pre sent their cases in person. Secretary Donna Lou West sug gests that students call on Thursdays or Fridays for appointments, be cause the schedule for the following week is made up on those days. “An appointment is necessary un less it’s an emergency,” she said. “E- mergencies we’ll try to handle as quickly as possible.” In consumer-protection and land lord-tenant cases, the lawyers may represent students in court. The ma jority of the cases the legal advisers handle are tenant/landlord or car re pair problems. “We’ve sued apartment com plexes, mechanics and car dealer ships in the past month,” Nancarrow said. “Suits are the only trial work we can do.” In other cases, if extended serv ices are required, they may refer stu dents to locil attorneys, who will charge the usu^l rates. But in every case, the students’ le gal advisors have been paid already, out of the student services fee. “This is a good point of action for the student,” Nancarrow said. “Most of the time private attorneys cost more than what is at stake.” Students are only responsible for court costs if the legal adviser rep resents them. In Class B and C misdemeanors, such as disorderly conduct or public intoxication, the student often can work with the city or county attor ney, Nancarrow said. Nancarrow cautions that there are some cases the office will not take. For example, it cannot represent one Texas A&M student against an other. If a student roommate is not coming up with his share of the rent, the problem should be taken to the mediation service provided by the Off-Campus Center in Puryear Hall. Nor can the office represent anyone against Texas A&M. “Some students come in and can’t understand why we can’t sue the University for them,” Nancarrow said, adding that his life would be simpler if such people would re member the University is his em ployer. Within those limits, the Office of the Students’ Legal Advisor provides Aggies with a valuable service at minimal cost. Nancarrow warns, however, thdt his is not the place for people who want to make money out of lawsuits. is • Wal-Mart Sells for Less • Wal-Mart Sells for Less • Wal-Mart Sells for Less • Wal-Mart Sells for Less • Wal-Mart Sells for Less • Wal-Mart Sells for Less • Wal-Mart Sens for Less •