Law: AN IDEA OF INTEREST

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Programs providing legal aid to the poor are in need of aid themselves at the moment. Congress cut federal funding by 25% last year. But now Florida and California have come up with a shiny new money source: the funds that are routinely paid in advance by clients and held in escrow bank accounts by their lawyers. When the amounts are small or in the bank for only a short time, they accumulate little or no interest. But pooled, the funds could generate millions in interest. To tap that potential pool, Florida has adopted a voluntary plan that allows any lawyer, without consulting clients, to pass along much of the interest on escrow accounts to Florida Legal Services. So far, about 600 of the state's 20,000 lawyers have signed up. California likes the interest-bearing idea enough to make it mandatory for most lawyers' escrow accounts, probably starting this fall-Both states have reason to hope the yield will be significant. A similar plan has been in effect in Canada's British Columbia since 1970 Last year the mandatory program there netted $7.4 million.