On June 6, the Community Organizations Legal Assistance Project Inc., doing business as the Community Development Law Center, announced that it had ceased operations on April 4.

The center cited “the ongoing recession and associated change in contribution trends” as a primary reason it could not continue to offer services.

For two decades, CDLC provided free or low-cost legal services to nonprofit organizations in central Indiana, which, in turn, worked to empower their communities. Staff and volunteer attorneys provided thousands of hours of pro bono service in areas such as incorporation and obtaining tax-exempt status, taxation, property rights, contracts, labor and employment, and other general corporate matters.  

Unlike other providers of pro bono legal services that assist low-income individuals, CDLC served the community-based organizations that worked with financially disadvantaged neighborhoods and their clientele.

Inquiries regarding CDLC generally may be directed to the Community Development Law Center, P.O. Box 3801, Carmel, IN 46082.