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Free Legal Help in Berks County: MidPenn, the Bar, Pro Bono

Free legal help in Berks County: who qualifies for MidPenn, the public defender, protection orders, free legal questions and the Bar's lawyer referral.

Berks Connect Blog|Published October 14, 2026
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If you can't afford a lawyer in Berks County, who to call depends on the problem. For some civil problems, meaning ones that aren't criminal charges, like eviction, custody, debt and abuse, MidPenn Legal Services (1-800-326-9177) gives free help to households under its income line, and the dollar limits are just below. For a criminal charge, it's the Berks County Public Defender (610-478-6650). If you earn too much for free help, the Bar's Modest Means Program offers a discounted lawyer in some kinds of cases to people whose income passes its screening, and the Bar's Lawyer Referral Service (610-375-4591) matches you with a local lawyer for a small referral fee.

BerksConnect's list of lawyers in Berks County shows who practices here. Here's who to call, side by side.

Where to call What it's for Who qualifies, or what it costs How to reach it
MidPenn Legal Services Free help in civil cases: housing, debt, custody, protection orders, public benefits and clearing a record. For most services, household income up to 125% of the federal poverty guidelines. It also serves survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. 1-800-326-9177, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., or apply.midpenn.org. Office at 35 North Sixth Street, Reading.
Berks County Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service A match with a Berks lawyer who handles your kind of problem. The Bar's printed guide lists a $50 referral fee, $10 at 65 and older, and none for injury, auto accident, workers' comp or Social Security cases. 610-375-4591, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. 544 Court Street, Reading.
The Bar's Modest Means Program A Berks lawyer at a discounted rate, in twelve kinds of cases. In the Bar's words, income that "exceeds legal aid standards by 75%." MidPenn's income check tells you whether you're inside it. Call MidPenn at 1-800-326-9177 for the income check.
Berks County Public Defender A lawyer for a criminal charge. People the office finds can't afford a lawyer, from a written financial application. 610-478-6650, weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Courthouse 12th floor, 633 Court Street. Apply in person 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., or online at least 2 business days before your hearing.
Safe Berks Free, confidential help filing for a protection order, and someone to go with you to police interviews and criminal hearings. Its legal help is free. Representation at no cost may be available, though it isn't guaranteed. Legal line 610-373-1206 ext. 107; hotline 1-844-789-7233, or text SAFE BERKS to 20121.
Community Justice Project Immigration applications: citizenship, DACA, green card and work permit renewals, VAWA petitions and U visas. Low-income people. Its legal representation is free. 610-370-7459. 35 North 6th Street, Mezzanine 103, Reading.
Pennsylvania SeniorLAW HelpLine Free advice by phone from lawyers on civil problems, including wills and powers of attorney. Pennsylvanians 60 and older. 1-877-727-7529, Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to noon.
Older Pennsylvanians Legal Assistance Program Free advice and representation. You still pay court costs and filing fees. Residents 60 and older, with a focus on those with the greatest economic or social need. Through the Berks Area Agency on Aging, 610-478-6500.
Pennsylvania Free Legal Answers A non-criminal question, answered online by a volunteer Pennsylvania lawyer. People who meet its qualifying questions. pa.freelegalanswers.org

Phones, hours and addresses as of October 7, 2026.

How do you get a free lawyer in Berks County?

Someone charged with a crime who can't afford a lawyer can apply for a public defender. A civil case generally carries no right to a free lawyer, which is why free help with housing, family or debt problems comes from legal aid: free lawyers from a nonprofit for people under an income line. In Berks County, that includes MidPenn Legal Services. It handles eviction, foreclosure, bad living conditions, debt collection, bankruptcy, utility shutoffs, custody, protection from abuse orders, unemployment compensation, clearing a criminal record and public benefits like SNAP and Medical Assistance.

Cases MidPenn says it can't take include criminal charges (other than clearing or sealing a record), traffic tickets and DUI, personal injury like a car accident, and workers' compensation.

You apply by phone or online, and the form works in Spanish too. Sending the form doesn't make you a client. You're a client once MidPenn contacts you and says it's accepted your case, and it tries to reach people within 2 business days. If the problem is urgent, MidPenn asks you to call rather than use the form.

For most of its services, MidPenn's limit is 125% of the federal poverty guidelines. As of 2026, that's $19,950 a year for one person, $27,050 for two, $34,150 for three and $41,250 for four.

What if you earn too much for legal aid? The Berks County Bar Association's Modest Means Program connects people above the legal aid line with a Berks lawyer at a discounted rate. The Bar sets its income limit as a percentage above the legal aid line and sends people to MidPenn for the income screening. The program covers twelve kinds of cases:

  • unemployment compensation claims
  • the tenant's side of a landlord-tenant case under a home lease
  • child support
  • child custody
  • defense of credit card and collection cases
  • bankruptcy
  • protection from abuse
  • review of a rent-to-own lease
  • defense of a home foreclosure
  • uncontested divorce
  • estate planning
  • traffic violations

How do you get a public defender in Berks County?

The Berks County Public Defender represents people charged with crimes who can't afford a lawyer, and it decides who qualifies from a written financial application. You apply in person, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., or online, where the application comes in English and Spanish and has to be in at least 2 business days before your hearing. Pay stubs and bank statements go by fax or mail, not email. Afterward, you call the office at 610-478-6650 to find out whether you were approved, and a new charge needs a new application.

A protection from abuse order, or PFA, is a court order that keeps an abuser away, and under state law filing for one costs the person asking for protection nothing. The county's PFA office at 633 Court Street takes filings from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. After the 2 p.m. filing cutoff, PFA staff help you apply for an emergency order through your local district judge. On weeknights after 7 p.m., and on weekends and holidays, Reading Central Court on the Courthouse's 1st floor takes them.

Safe Berks gives free, confidential legal help with these orders. It helps you file, can come with you to police interviews and criminal hearings, and may represent you at no cost, though that isn't guaranteed.

For immigration, Community Justice Project gives free legal representation to low-income people. Its Reading immigration team works in English and Spanish on citizenship applications, green card and work permit renewals and U visas, and it's on the U.S. Justice Department's list of recognized organizations, the groups allowed to give immigration legal help. ALDEA, The People's Justice Center offers low-cost legal services to immigrants with a focus on Berks County.

People 60 and older have two free lines. The Pennsylvania SeniorLAW HelpLine, 1-877-727-7529, is staffed by lawyers and covers civil problems like wills, powers of attorney and debt. The state's Older Pennsylvanians Legal Assistance Program gives free advice and representation to residents 60 and older, focused on those with the greatest economic or social need, and you reach it through the Berks Area Agency on Aging. Our guide to senior services in Berks County covers the rest.

Can you call a lawyer to ask questions for free?

Sometimes. Pennsylvania Free Legal Answers lets people who qualify post a non-criminal legal question online at no cost, and volunteer lawyers licensed in Pennsylvania answer it. That's pro bono work, which means lawyers volunteering their time for free. They can't represent you in court or promise an answer before a court date.

For custody and divorce, the county says nobody in a court or county office can give legal advice, tell you which forms to file or help you fill them out. The county's Family Court self-help page has custody forms, fee waiver forms and a link to the state's divorce forms. A fee waiver asks the court to excuse its fees when you can't pay the costs of a case. Court papers call it in forma pauperis. If your problem is a small claim you'd file yourself, our Berks County government guide links to a step-by-step guide to filing one.

When a private law firm advertises a free consultation, that's the firm's own offer, and some Berks-area firms limit it to certain kinds of cases, like criminal or personal injury cases. Ask before the meeting what's free and what's billed.

How does the Berks County Bar's lawyer referral service work?

If free help doesn't fit, the Bar's Lawyer Referral Service matches you with a Berks lawyer who handles your kind of problem. You can call, make an appointment at its Court Street office, or use the online form, which lets you ask for a lawyer who speaks Spanish or one of six other languages. Lawyers on its panel must be licensed, practicing in Berks and in good standing.

The Bar's printed guide lists a $50 cash fee for a referral, $10 for people 65 and older, and none for workers' compensation, personal injury, auto accident or Social Security cases, so ask about the fee when you call. Then ask the lawyer you're matched with what the first meeting costs. Our list of lawyers in Berks County shows who practices here, and our guide to finding a lawyer in Berks County covers how to choose one and check a license.

Everything here is general information about which office handles what, not legal advice. A question about your own case goes to a lawyer, the Bar's referral service or MidPenn.

Is there free help with a divorce in Berks County?

Divorce isn't on MidPenn's services list. The Bar's Modest Means Program covers uncontested divorce at a discounted rate for people above the legal aid line, and MidPenn's income check tells you whether you qualify. Pennsylvania Free Legal Answers takes divorce questions online, and the SeniorLAW HelpLine gives free phone advice on divorce to people 60 and older.

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