LISC reminds residents about free legal help for heirs property and notes small-business grant distributions

Representatives from Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and partnering legal services briefed residents on free legal help for heirs property and on a small-business capital access program that distributed grants and loans.

Johnson Borah of LISC described heirs property — cases where ownership records do not clearly reflect current heirs — and said LISC partners with 3 Rivers Legal Services to provide no-cost legal assistance, including estate planning and probate-related help. Borah said referral forms were available and that funding from multiple partners, including the city, supports intake and legal representation.

Borah explained that resolving heirs property is typically easier with prevention (estate planning) than by later probate and encouraged residents to contact legal partners for help. He said attorneys can also assist with cases involving elderly owners with cognitive challenges, and organizers said student interns and referral staff could assist residents with forms.

Separately, a program representative told the meeting they administer the city’s small-business capital access program and said the program had allocated funds to 48 businesses earlier in the year; the program offered grants and loans and required businesses to meet basic eligibility such as being in operation for at least a year.

Organizers left referral forms and said staff and interns would follow up with residents interested in heirs-property assistance or small-business capital access.