The Legal Aid Society of Hawai'i will kick off a three-year campaign today to help improve access to justice for the poor. The society hopes to raise $1 million for the project.

The kickoff event will be from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the Legal Aid Society's Downtown headquarters, 924 Bethel St.

Funds donated to the campaign will help support Legal Aid's efforts to expand legal assistance to low- and moderate-income people.

The event follows last week's release of a report on access to justice for Hawai'i's poor, which showed only one in five low- and moderate-income Hawai'i residents have their legal needs met.

"This event is only the first of many steps that Legal Aid will be taking to address the shortfall of legal assistance for our state's poor," said Chuck Greenfield, executive director of the Legal Aid Society.