Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC) is a grassroots, membership organization run by Returning Citizens (formerly convicted persons) who are dedicated to ending the disenfranchisement and discrimination against people with convictions.

FRRC believes that returning citizens can play an essential role in strengthening our communities and increasing public safety, especially when barriers to voting and civic participation are removed. We also believe people who are closest to the pain are closest to the solution.

Therefore, to foster the highest levels of civic engagement possible in Florida's returning citizen population, we are using our Attorney Assistance Program to break down the barriers to voting for people with previous felony convictions.

In 2018, Florida voters passed Amendment 4 to restore voting rights to people who had been convicted of certain felonies. However, financial obligations (e.g. fines, fees, or court costs) still block many people from reinstating and exercising their right to vote.

Florida has created a mechanism for courts to terminate these outstanding fines and fees or convert them to community service hours, which can remove barriers to Returning Citizens restoring their voting rights.

FRRC is recruiting passionate pro bono volunteers who are willing to assist Returning Citizens throughout the modification process to remove these financial hurdles and to advocate for relief as needed on a case-by-case basis. Lawyers who sign up for this project will use case documents prepared by other FRRC volunteer lawyers to represent Returning Citizens by filing and arguing for modification in court.

Volunteer lawyers on this project will receive fully prepared modification case packages, which will include the motions, orders, and exhibits needed to file. These lawyers will meet briefly with clients, file the documents needed to seek a modification of fines and fees, appear at a hearing, and debrief about the outcome with the client.

We expect each case to require approximately three hours of the volunteer attorney's time. Requirements vary by court, but in some cases, filings may be made online and hearings may occur over Zoom.