The Price People Pay: Criminal Fines and Fees in America and What Lawyers Can Do to Help

Across the United States, approximately 10 million people collectively owe more than $50 billion in fines, fees, and restitution connected to criminal cases, for everything from traffic violations to felonies. If people cannot pay immediately, they may face growing interest and additional fees; ruined credit that makes it difficult to rent a home, buy a car, or get a loan; suspension of a driver’s license; loss of voting rights; and even incarceration. As with policing and mass incarceration, the burdens of fines and fees policies fall most heavily on low-income as well as Black and brown communities.

During this one hour CLE, attorneys will learn about the history of fines and fees in America, the implications for racial and economic inequity today, and trends in fines and fees laws and policies across the United States.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the difference between fines and fees
• Discover the history of criminal fines and fees in America
• Learn about how fines and fees contribute to a two-tiered justice system
• Explore the economic and political cost-benefit analysis of fines and fees policies
• Understand emerging trends in fines and fee policies