On August 14, 2008, President Bush signed H.R. 4137, now P.L. 110-315 – The Higher Education Reauthorization and College Opportunity Act of 2008. Although funds are authorized for each program, Congress will now have to make appropriations to fund these programs.

A graduate of a law school with an LRAP can receive funds from the program to help with his or her student loan repayment, as long as the graduate is earning a low salary for work in public interest or government employment, and meets all other program requirements.

The LRAPs Training Workbook is a step-by-step guide to improve an existing LRAP. The material is organized to take you through different stages of improving an LRAP. From the need for LRAPs to program design to funding, this workbook explains many of the issues involved in such a program.

In an effort to ease the financial burdens facing new attorneys working in public interest positions, some public interest employers establish loan repayment assistance programs for their employees. See results from a recent survey by the National Association of Law Placement regarding Employer LRAPs.

Created and administered by bar associations, bar foundations, independent nonprofit organizations and state education administrations, 17 states offer loan repayment assistance programs. Equal Justice Works thanks Kelly Carmody of Carmody and Associates and the American Bar Association for this state LRAP information. Find comprehensive state LRAP information at www.abanet.org/legalservices/lrap/home.html

Equal Justice Works' latest report, Financing the Future: Responses to the Rising Debt of Law Students, (Second Edition 2006), is about the debt burden facing law graduates and includes detailed information about available debt relief programs such as public interest scholarships, loan repayment assistance programs and postgraduate public interest fellowship programs.