Open Law Services Institute · 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Public Charity
Free legal help for civil matters, from a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
Open Law Services Institute (OLSI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity, EIN 42-2351258. Our mission is to expand access to civil justice. We publish free, plain-English legal guides — written and reviewed by licensed attorneys — for low-income individuals, small businesses, and nonprofits facing civil legal matters in Florida. Everything we publish is free, with no account and no paywall.
Who we help
Built for three communities
Our resources are organized around the people who need them most — each with guides tailored to the legal questions they actually face.
Browse all resourcesSelf-Represented Litigants
Handle your own civil case with confidence — from filing and motions to hearings and orders.
Non-Profit Organizations
Handle civil disputes, court deadlines, and worker-classification questions with the same plain-English guides.
Small Businesses
Lay sound legal foundations — entity choice, contracts, leases, and resolving disputes.
Free legal guides
Start with a guide
Each guide is a complete, plain-English walkthrough, written and reviewed by licensed attorneys, with a downloadable PDF and a short video walkthrough. Here are six places to start.
Starting Your First Civil Case
How to begin a civil action — choosing the right court and venue, drafting and filing your complaint, paying or waiving fees, and serving the other side correctly. Read the free guide
Defending a Civil Case in Florida
You've been sued. This guide walks the defense of a Florida civil case in order — the 20-day clock to respond, the motion to dismiss under Rule 1.140(b), the answer and affirmative defenses (which now must plead ultimate facts), compulsory counterclaims, and the procedural traps that lose cases before the merits. Read the free guide
Responding to a Debt Collection Lawsuit in Florida
You've been sued over a debt. This guide walks the response in order — your deadline, filing an answer, the statute-of-limitations defense, forcing a debt buyer to prove it owns the account, vacating a default, and protecting your wages and home under the FDCPA and FCCPA. Read the free guide
Small Claims Court in Florida
How to bring or defend a case for $8,000 or less in Florida county court — filing a Statement of Claim, serving the other side, the all-important pretrial conference, mediation, the discovery difference, presenting your case, and collecting a judgment. Read the free guide
Forming a Florida LLC
A step-by-step walkthrough of forming a Florida LLC — a compliant name, the articles of organization on Sunbiz, a registered agent, your EIN, Department of Revenue registration, licenses and workers' comp, the annual report, and the current beneficial-ownership status. Read the free guide
Independent Contractor vs. Employee
How to classify workers in Florida under the four tests that apply at once (IRS, FLSA, workers' comp, reemployment tax) — the shifting 2026 federal rules, misclassification penalties, Section 530 and VCSP relief, and how to write an IC agreement that holds up. Read the free guideThe justice gap
Why this work matters
The need for affordable civil legal help is well documented — and growing.
“Low-income individuals do not get any or enough legal help for 92% of the problems that have had a substantial impact on them.”
“Too often, when smaller nonprofits need legal services, they simply cannot afford them and are forced to do without.”
“Most people and small businesses, however, struggle to find affordable legal help when they need it.”
OLSI was built to answer this gap. Since launching in early 2026, we have published 15 free, plain-English civil legal guides — each written and reviewed by licensed attorneys and released under an open Creative Commons license. In our first two months of operation, these resources drew roughly 68,000 requests from nearly 20,000 people, small businesses, and nonprofits seeking legal help.
Our mission
Expanding access to justice.
Open Law Services Institute is a 501(c)(3) public charity dedicated to expanding access to civil legal help. We believe that not being able to afford a lawyer should never mean facing the legal system alone — so we put clear, attorney-written guidance directly in people's hands.
Get in touchWhere we work
Florida
Our guides currently focus on Florida state courts and Florida law, with federal topics where they apply.