When the United States was foundedmansion, friends and neighbors could freely advise one another how to deal with legal problems. Anyone could give advice about the law or draft legal documents for others. One had to be a lawyer to advocate before certain courts, but that was all that lawyers had an exclusive right to do.

New York’s highest court launched a significant change in 1919 when it declared that the practice of law, reserved exclusively for lawyers, included legal assistance provided for a fee outside the courthouse. The court noted that one “probably” could “ask a friend or neighbor” for legal help, but courts have since expanded lawyers’ monopoly so that laws across the country restrict anyone who is not a lawyer from helping another person with a legal problem.

These laws prohibiting the “unauthorized practice of law” hurt those who cannot afford a lawyer. Even those who have relevant training or personal experience but are not lawyers may not offer free advice on how to handle a common legal problem. They cannot advise, for example, how to use legal processes to pursue the return of a security deposit, obtain overtime or a payment for child support, or prove that a debt was repaid.

A civil rights lawsuit pending in New York in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, Upsolve v. James, provides a prime example of the broad sweep of these laws.

Brought by the nonprofit organization Upsolve and the Rev. John Udo-Okon, a pastor in the South Bronx, the case focuses on debt collection lawsuits. Hundreds of thousands are filed annually in New York State, and millions more across the country. Many people sued in these cases cannot afford a lawyer. With help, many could defend themselves by explaining, for example, that the wrong person was sued, the wrong amount was sought, the wrong creditor claimed to own the debt, the lawsuit was filed too late and the like. But most people do not respond to the suits, allowing creditors to obtain default judgments and then garnish people’s wages and seize their assets.

Mr. Udo-Okon wants to help members of his congregation sued in debt collection cases, and he has received training from Upsolve, a civil rights group focused on helping low-income New Yorkers respond to debt collection lawsuits, to help him do this well. More than 100 community residents have said they would want his free legal help. If permitted, he would download a fill-in-the-blank form from the New York courts’ website, then explain to people how to complete and file the form. That’s all. But even this would violate the state’s unauthorized practice bans.

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