CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20252026 REGULAR SESSION Senate Bill No. 610Introduced by Senators Prez, Allen, and Wahab(Principal coauthors: Senators Cervantes, Cortese, Durazo, Gonzalez, Menjivar, and Smallwood-Cuevas)(Coauthors: Senators Cabaldon, Laird, and Reyes)February 20, 2025 An act to amend Sections 6159.5 and 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to professions and vocations. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTSB 610, as introduced, Prez. Legal aid organizations: indigent persons.Existing law makes it unlawful for a person or organization to use the term legal aid, legal aide, or any confusingly similar name in any firm name, trade name, fictitious business name, or any other designation, or on any advertisement, letterhead, business card, or sign, unless the person or organization is a legal aid organization subject to fair use principles for nominative, descriptive, or noncommercial use. Existing law authorizes a consumer injured by a violation of the above provision to file a complaint seeking specified injunctive relief, restitution, and damages. Under existing law, a legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor without charge.This bill would revise that definition of legal aid organization to instead specify that it means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for indigent persons without charge. The bill would define indigent person for these purposes and would make related, conforming changes.Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO Bill TextThe people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1. Section 6159.5 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.SEC. 2. Section 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20252026 REGULAR SESSION Senate Bill No. 610Introduced by Senators Prez, Allen, and Wahab(Principal coauthors: Senators Cervantes, Cortese, Durazo, Gonzalez, Menjivar, and Smallwood-Cuevas)(Coauthors: Senators Cabaldon, Laird, and Reyes)February 20, 2025 An act to amend Sections 6159.5 and 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to professions and vocations. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTSB 610, as introduced, Prez. Legal aid organizations: indigent persons.Existing law makes it unlawful for a person or organization to use the term legal aid, legal aide, or any confusingly similar name in any firm name, trade name, fictitious business name, or any other designation, or on any advertisement, letterhead, business card, or sign, unless the person or organization is a legal aid organization subject to fair use principles for nominative, descriptive, or noncommercial use. Existing law authorizes a consumer injured by a violation of the above provision to file a complaint seeking specified injunctive relief, restitution, and damages. Under existing law, a legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor without charge.This bill would revise that definition of legal aid organization to instead specify that it means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for indigent persons without charge. The bill would define indigent person for these purposes and would make related, conforming changes.Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20252026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 610
Introduced by Senators Prez, Allen, and Wahab(Principal coauthors: Senators Cervantes, Cortese, Durazo, Gonzalez, Menjivar, and Smallwood-Cuevas)(Coauthors: Senators Cabaldon, Laird, and Reyes)February 20, 2025
Introduced by Senators Prez, Allen, and Wahab(Principal coauthors: Senators Cervantes, Cortese, Durazo, Gonzalez, Menjivar, and Smallwood-Cuevas)(Coauthors: Senators Cabaldon, Laird, and Reyes)
February 20, 2025
An act to amend Sections 6159.5 and 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to professions and vocations.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
## LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 610, as introduced, Prez. Legal aid organizations: indigent persons.
Existing law makes it unlawful for a person or organization to use the term legal aid, legal aide, or any confusingly similar name in any firm name, trade name, fictitious business name, or any other designation, or on any advertisement, letterhead, business card, or sign, unless the person or organization is a legal aid organization subject to fair use principles for nominative, descriptive, or noncommercial use. Existing law authorizes a consumer injured by a violation of the above provision to file a complaint seeking specified injunctive relief, restitution, and damages. Under existing law, a legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor without charge.This bill would revise that definition of legal aid organization to instead specify that it means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for indigent persons without charge. The bill would define indigent person for these purposes and would make related, conforming changes.
Existing law makes it unlawful for a person or organization to use the term legal aid, legal aide, or any confusingly similar name in any firm name, trade name, fictitious business name, or any other designation, or on any advertisement, letterhead, business card, or sign, unless the person or organization is a legal aid organization subject to fair use principles for nominative, descriptive, or noncommercial use. Existing law authorizes a consumer injured by a violation of the above provision to file a complaint seeking specified injunctive relief, restitution, and damages. Under existing law, a legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor without charge.
This bill would revise that definition of legal aid organization to instead specify that it means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for indigent persons without charge. The bill would define indigent person for these purposes and would make related, conforming changes.
## Digest Key
## Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1. Section 6159.5 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.SEC. 2. Section 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
## The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 6159.5 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.
SECTION 1. Section 6159.5 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:
### SECTION 1.
6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.
6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.
6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.
6159.5. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Legal aid programs provide a valuable service to the public by providing free legal services to the poor. indigent persons.
(b) Private, for-profit organizations that have no lawyers have been using the name legal aid in order to obtain business from people who believe they are obtaining services from a nonprofit legal aid organization.
(c) Public opinion research has shown that the term legal aid is commonly understood by the public to mean free legal assistance for the poor. indigent persons.
(d) Members of the public seeking free legal assistance are often referred by telephone and other directory assistance information providers to for-profit organizations that charge a fee for their services, and there are a large number of listings in many telephone directories for legal aid that are not nonprofit but are actually for-profit organizations.
(e) The Los Angeles Superior Court has held that there is a common law trademark on the name legal aid, which means legal services for the poor indigent persons provided by a nonprofit organization.
(f) The public will be benefited if for-profit organizations are prohibited from using the term legal aid, in order to avoid confusion.
SEC. 2. Section 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.
SEC. 2. Section 6159.51 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:
### SEC. 2.
6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.
6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.
6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.
6159.51. For purposes of this article, legal aid article:
(a) Legal aid organization means a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor indigent persons without charge.
(b) Indigent person has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 6213.