Scott Clippinger, 76, operates his law practice out of the old hardware store in the tiniest municipality in New York State. ”I've always liked rural folk, and I always liked small towns,” he says.

But his daughters, who are ages 34 and 31 and also lawyers, have no taste for rural life, and nothing dad says will bring them back to the village of Smyrna. That explains, in a microcosm, the crisis affecting vast swaths of upstate New York. Rural justice is a quickly disappearing commodity.

In 2007, 33 lawyers were in private practice in Chenango County, where Clippinger resides. Today, fewer than half remain. Eleven have retired, four have left the area, and four have died. While some still remain registered with the state, they are no longer active.

A survey by Albany Law School published in April shows the strain facing those left behind. Among its conclusions: Rural attorneys are overwhelmed by their caseloads, suffering financial stress and struggling with limited resources. Nearly half of those surveyed said there weren't enough attorneys for everyone who needs them.

And even more alarming to those who conducted the survey: 40% of those who responded said they were often unable to make referrals to other attorneys. Of those, 62% said they couldn't refer someone to another attorney because there was no one with the right expertise.

In response to the shortage, the New York State Bar Association is about to announce the formation of a task force, and Clippinger is going to be a member.

Stan L. Pritzker, an associate justice on the Appellate Division, Third Department, and Taier Perlman, staff attorney at Albany Law School's Government Law Center and the author of its report on rural justice, will co-chair the task force.

Henry M. Greenberg, a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig and president of the state bar, said in an interview that he is calling on the task force to make suggestions for changes in laws and public policy in time for the April meeting of the House of Delegates.

“There are increasing challenges getting young lawyers to settle in these counties. They're carrying significant legal debt,” Greenberg said. “In many of these communities, the justice gap is vast and this is a crisis.”

Clippinger with his wife Judi, the legal administrator at the office. Photo: Margaret Brenner

Clippinger said law school debt makes attorneys less interested in pursuing a career in upstate New York. “As law school has become more expensive, they can't afford to live on the salaries that a rural practice can support,” he said.

Fred Ury, a founding member of Ury & Moskow in Connecticut and chair of the American Bar Association Center for Professional Responsibility Co-Ordinating Council, said the lack of attorneys in rural areas is only going to get worse.

He said there are already rural counties in Georgia with no attorneys whatsoever. Prosecutors and public defenders have to be brought in, and it's even more difficult to find a lawyer to handle a civil matter. Maine, too, has experienced a decrease in the number of lawyers, he said.

“We're going to be very challenged as we go down the road because there are a lot more lawyers retiring than are coming in,” he said.

More than half of the rural attorneys in the New York survey were at or nearing retirement age.

Responses like this were typical: “I am the only lawyer handling complex business transactions. I am 69 years old and cannot retire because too many people rely on me.”

Luckily for Chenango County, Clippinger doesn't want to retire anytime soon.

“I don't think free time is everything that it's cracked up to be,” he says.