Getting the business community to support access to civil justice has been a confounding question for legal aid organizations, but two Miami groups have projects taking innovative approaches to the issue.

Michael Finney, president of the Beacon Council, Miami-Dade County's economic development arm, told a gathering organized by Legal Services of Greater Miami Inc. on Thursday that he is spearheading an effort to help move people in poverty to economic viability.

“I'm probably getting ahead of where my board is with this,” he conceded, but he said six groups have been recruited as partners in a program modeled on Community Ventures of Michigan. Finney came to Miami from Detroit about six months ago and was involved in the Michigan effort, which he said helped 5,000 people find jobs.