Timpanogos Legal Center announces the transition of its Certified Advocate Partners Program to Community Justice Advocates of Utah, ensuring the continued growth and administration of the program while expanding access to justice through trained non-lawyer advocates.
Community Justice Advocates of Utah announces that they have entered into an agreement with Timpanogos Legal Center to manage the highly successful Certified Advocate Partners Program.
The Certified Advocate Partners Program (CAPP) is the longest-running community-based legal advocacy program in the Utah Legal Regulatory Sandbox (“Sandbox”). The program, which was granted authorization to operate in February 2021, has been groundbreaking in exploring what is possible in delivering legal services to underserved Utahns.
Hayley Cousin, Executive Director of Community Justice Advocates of Utah (CJAU), directed the program while she was a Staff Attorney at Timpanogos Legal Center (TLC). The initiative began with Susan Griffith, TLC’s Executive Director, who envisioned training and empowering victim advocates to provide legal advice and assistance on protective orders—authority once only reserved for attorneys.
Susan Griffith explains, “When a survivor decides to leave, the first person they often turn to is a Victim Advocate—the person who listens, explains, and walks beside them into court. These advocates know the courtroom, the judges, and the process, yet for years, they couldn’t give the legal advice survivors desperately needed. Through the Sandbox, we gave them advanced training and certification, unlocking their ability to offer that guidance in the critical moments when it matters most.”
Since 2021, the program has certified 34 victim advocates throughout Utah to deliver limited-scope legal services to individuals who have experienced abuse and stalking who are now interested in seeking a civil protective order or civil stalking injunction. Through the end of 2024, CAPP-trained advocates served 402 Utahns, educating them on their rights and, when appropriate, assisting them with the request process.“
Directing CAPP over the past four years taught me important lessons about access to civil legal justice, and about community collaboration and trust,” Hayley Cousin said. “Those lessons are the foundation for CJAU’s work and mission. I am incredibly grateful to Timpanogos LegalCenter for their trust in CJAU to carry forward this work.”
After more than a year of collaborative evaluation, the organizations decided to transfer CAPP from TLC to CJAU. The program achieved significant success under TLC’s stewardship—a reflection of their leadership in legal service delivery and innovation. With its capacity to support long-term growth and sustainability, and its deep commitment to supporting nonlawyer advocates, CJAU is well-equipped to carry the work forward. TLC will continue to play a role in the program’s future by providing training and mentorship support.
TLC’s leadership in creating and sustaining CAPP solidifies its contribution to innovation and collaboration within both Utah’s legal landscape and the broader national access to justice movement. The success of this transition also underscores the value of Utah’s Sandbox, which encourages the intentional testing and refinement of new legal service delivery models.
“At this moment of change throughout the country as we design and test solutions to the accessto justice crisis, the opportunity to continue to evaluate and iterate within the Sandbox is critical,”said Hayley Cousin. “We are grateful to the Utah Supreme Court for the ongoing opportunity to learn and to bring about lasting change within our communities."
Program Accomplishments
In 2024, CAPP outcomes were compared to data provided by the Utah Courts. That data showed that clients who receive legal services from a CAPP advocate are roughly twice as likely to receive an order of protection than the statewide average, which includes cases brought by self-represented and attorney-represented litigants.
Additionally, following feedback from CAPP advocates, TLC requested an amendment to their Sandbox authorization that would allow advocates to sit at counsel’s table alongside their self-represented clients. This request led to the creation of a new Utah court rule that enables non-traditional legal providers, such as CAPP advocates, to sit with their clients in court toprovide quiet guidance on how to present their case and respond to questions from the court. CAPP advocates began offering this help in early 2025.
This project was supported in part by the Utah Office for Victims of Crime, awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication are those of Timpanogos Legal Center and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Justice or the Utah Office for Victims of Crime.
This project was supported in part by the Utah Office for Victims of Crime, awarded by the State of Utah. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication are those of Timpanogos Legal Center and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Utah Office for Victims of Crime or the Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice.
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