FFLA Improvements in the Administration of Justice (AOJ) Grant

Status: 🟡 PURSUE - APPLICATION WINDOW MONITORING Prior Relationship: Jordan Dollar & David Brown submitted ~2024 (not funded) Deadline: TBD (historically January-February cycle; monitor fundingfla.org)

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Opportunity Overview

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Why This is a PURSUE Opportunity

1. Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP) Model Alignment

NHELP's household-based care model systematically identifies legal barriers to health — eviction risk, immigration status, public benefits access, domestic violence — through SDOH screening. This grant funds the critical "legal response" side of that pipeline.

2. Strong Internal Champions & Partnership Structure

3. Prior Submission Provides Foundation

Jordan Dollar and David Brown submitted an FFLA grant ~2 years ago for Thrive-related work. While not funded, the experience provides:

• Familiarity with FFLA application process and portal
• Understanding of reviewer expectations
• Identified areas to strengthen (the "different angle" Jordan is pursuing)

4. LSGMI Is an Established FFLA Partner

LSGMI receives ~$942K annually from FFLA through IOTA distributions and has a multi-decade relationship with the organization. Their involvement as a collaborator significantly strengthens credibility.

5. Scoring Analysis

Scoring Rationale:

• Funder Alignment (3.5): FFLA explicitly seeks programs improving justice administration for underserved populations. The MLP model fits AOJ Focus Areas #1 (innovative legal services) and #2 (underserved populations). Slight deduction: FFLA primarily funds legal organizations, not health organizations. FIU's positioning as health-side partner rather than legal lead is atypical.

• Capability Match (3.5): NHELP provides unmatched community trust and access infrastructure. Thrive identifies legal needs through SDOH screening. However, FIU lacks direct legal service delivery capacity — depends entirely on LSGMI and FIU Law partnerships. The "capability" is infrastructure/access, not legal expertise.

• Success Probability (3.0): Prior submission was not funded, indicating the funder may need significant persuasion on the health-legal model. However, the "different angle" with FIU Law + LSGMI addresses likely reviewer concerns about legal credentials. Competition is moderate (4-10 awards from ~$1M pool). The eligibility requirement under Florida Bar Rule 5-1.1(g) may present complexity for a health organization.

• Strategic Value (4.0): Opens an entirely new funder relationship outside the traditional health/SDOH funding ecosystem. Medical-legal partnership model, if funded, creates a template for future legal barrier interventions across all NHELP households. Strengthens FIU internal cross-college collaboration (Medicine ↔ Law).

• Resource Efficiency (3.5): Jordan Dollar has institutional knowledge from prior submission. LSGMI brings FFLA relationship capital. However, navigating legal funder eligibility requirements and multi-partner coordination adds overhead.

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Route Classification: Route 4 (NHELP as Vehicle)

Organizing Principle: Mechanism — NHELP's community infrastructure delivers the funder's intervention (legal services access).

Why Route 4:

• Funder (FFLA) has a specific intervention: improving access to justice for underserved Floridians
• NHELP provides the delivery mechanism: trusted household relationships, SDOH screening that identifies legal barriers, and a warm handoff pipeline to legal service providers
• FIU is not the legal services innovator — FIU is the community access infrastructure

Framing Template:

"Leveraging NeighborhoodHELP's established community health infrastructure and FIU Thrive's SDOH screening platform, this project creates a systematic medical-legal partnership pipeline connecting underserved Miami-Dade households to civil legal services through LSGMI and FIU College of Law. NHELP's trusted household relationships — built over years of longitudinal engagement — provide the unique community entry point that legal aid organizations cannot independently replicate."

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FFLA AOJ Program: Five Focus Areas

FFLA considers these five areas conducive to the administration of justice:

Strongest alignment: Focus Areas #1, #2, and #5.

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Eligibility Considerations

Critical Decision: Determine whether FIU applies directly or whether LSGMI leads the application with FIU as a partner/subcontractor. Given FFLA's grantee eligibility requirements (primarily legal organizations), LSGMI as lead applicant with FIU/NHELP as partner is the recommended structure.

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Proposed Project Concept

"Health-Justice Bridge: A Medical-Legal Partnership Connecting NHELP Households to Civil Legal Services"

The Problem: Low-income households in Miami-Dade face interconnected health and legal barriers. Housing instability, eviction risk, public benefits denials, immigration challenges, and family law issues directly impact health outcomes. Yet legal aid organizations struggle to reach the most isolated populations, while health providers who identify legal needs lack referral pathways.

The Solution: A structured medical-legal partnership (MLP) leveraging three institutional strengths:

1. NHELP/Thrive — Identifies legal needs through validated SDOH screening during household visits. CHWs trained to recognize legal red flags. Warm handoff protocol to legal services.

2. FIU College of Law — Student attorneys provide supervised legal consultations. Pro bono pipeline for faculty-supervised representation. Legal rights education integrated into NHELP community engagement.

3. LSGMI — Full representation for complex cases. Expertise in housing, employment, benefits, and family law. Established FFLA grantee with infrastructure for legal service delivery.

Innovation: Unlike traditional MLPs housed in hospitals/clinics, this model embeds legal screening in community-based household visits — reaching populations that never enter healthcare or legal aid offices.

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Past AOJ Grantees (Competitive Context)

Observation: Awards cluster at $100K-$300K. Projects emphasize underserved populations and innovation. A medical-legal partnership model would be novel in the AOJ portfolio.

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Strategic Recommendations

1. Application Structure

• LSGMI as lead applicant (established FFLA grantee, legal organization)
• FIU HWCOM/NHELP as key partner (community access, SDOH screening)
• FIU College of Law as partner (pro bono, student attorneys)

2. Budget Framework (Target: $150,000–$200,000)

3. Immediate Action Items

4. Key Risks & Mitigations

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FFLA Organization Context

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Monday Meeting Preparation (Mar 2, 2026)

For Fred's meeting with Ozzie Delgado, Emmi, David, Dr. Clarke, and Virama:

Key Talking Points:

1. New opportunity from FFLA (formerly Florida Bar Foundation) — $60K-$300K competitive grants
2. Jordan Dollar is leading with FIU Law + LSGMI partnership — "different angle" from prior submission
3. Medical-legal partnership model: NHELP identifies legal needs → warm handoff to legal services
4. Scored at 3.48 (PURSUE tier) — strong strategic value, moderate capability match
5. Immediate action needed: confirm application timeline and lead applicant structure

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Contact Information

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Files in This Folder

035-ffla-aoj/
├── README.md                       # This file
├── application/
│   └── APPLICATION-CHECKLIST.md    # Eligibility & submission requirements
├── research/
│   ├── FUNDER-PROFILE.md           # FFLA organizational profile
│   ├── FUNDER-DEEP-DIVE.md         # Detailed funder analysis
│   └── PROGRAM-DETAILS.md          # AOJ program specifics
├── drafts/
│   └── [working documents]
└── supporting-docs/
    └── [partnership letters, prior submission materials]