Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc.

Transcription

1 Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc. Snapshot of Accomplishments, The Legal Aid Society primarily funded with IOLA funds, provided legal services and technical support to a total of 9,441 individual and training to 795 individuals in the community through: The Family Law Unit provided representation for all areas of family law, which included but were not limited to prevention of domestic violence, elder abuse, divorce, custody, equitable distribution, and child support in Monroe, Orleans, and Wayne Counties. Specifically, representation was provided to 2,098 clients in domestic violence prevention and related family law matters. The Housing Unit provided brief services and direct legal representation to 1,664 clients in the areas of eviction prevention, foreclosure prevention, mediation services and representation to first time homebuyers. Specifically, direct legal services were provided to tenants facing immediate eviction in Rochester City Court, mediation to landlords and tenants throughout the City of Rochester, representation in home closings, foreclosure prevention, bankruptcies and evictions appeals throughout Monroe County. The Immigration Program provided direct legal service to 974 clients in matters ranging from asylum to permanent residency at the U.S. Immigration Court and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Buffalo, New York. Services were provided in collaboration with Hiscock Legal Aid in Syracuse and Legal Aid Society of Northeastern NY in Albany and covered 47 counties in NYS. The Children's Unit provided direct legal and advocacy services to 780 youth and parents in education and other youth related legal issues in Monroe, Livingston, Genesee, and Orleans Counties. Continued on last page Service Area: Monroe County and Surrounding Area This Provider At a Glance Population Served: General Low Income Population Area Served: Monroe County and Surrounding Area Total Funding: $2,242,384 Total IOLA Grant(s): $604,044 Staffing - Full Time Equivalents Total Staff: Lawyers: Paralegals: Staff: 3.17 Types of Services Provided Direct Civil Legal Representation Brief Services * Extended Services * Hotlines and Phone-Based Services ) Community Legal Education * Pro Se Assistance ) Support for Service Providers * Major Cases or Advocacy Projects ) The IOLA Grant(s) Civil Legal Services $604,044 See page 3 Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc. - 1

2 Outcomes 13,759 Individuals Benefited from Direct Civil Legal Representation Extended Representation Outcomes 3,087 People delayed eviction providing time to seek alternative housing 2,105 People obtained or maintained custody of children 1,310 People obtained protection from domestic violence 362 People obtained a divorce, legal separation or annulment 1,603 People obtained benefits from other "extended representation" Brief Representation Benefits 4,992 People benefited from legal advice and counsel 248 People benefited from non-litigation advocacy services 52 People benefited by referral to other sources of help Dollar Benefits Achieved for Clients - Total $3,269,508 Family Law - Child Support: $2,655,449 Family Law - Alimony: $107,140 Affirmative Judgements: $500,057 Benefits: $6,862 Total includes back awards and 3 year total of monthly benefits, estimated over 6 months (unemployment compensation), 12 months (other federal benefits, food stamps, alimony, affirmative judgements and other benefits) or 36 months (Social Security, SSI and child support). Examples... Outcomes for Clients hen Client's father passed away from W cancer, he used the money remaining after the funeral expenses to keep up the mortgage payments on his father's house. Having left his job to take care of his father, he also returned to work. Despite his efforts, his savings and his salary were insufficient to make the mortgage payments and maintain the house. Client turned to LAS to try to keep his house. First, LAS negotiated with the bank to allow Client to assume his father's FHA insured loan. After transferring ownership and executing the assumption, the attorney applied to get Client's case through the bank's loss mitigation review for an FHA-HAMP loan modification as opposed to a short forbearance plan, which would have required Client to pay all of his arrears at the end of the loan term. The bank denied the request. LAS contacted the Federal Housing Administration directly and succeeded in getting the bank's loss mitigation representative to submit Client's case for FHA- HAMP review. Client was successfully able to enter into a loan modification with a lower interest rate, lower monthly payments, lower principle, and a non-interest bearing balloon payment due at the end of the loan. Most importantly, he was able to keep maintain ownership of his father's house. The Legal Aid Society works closely with a local church, in conjunction with a local Examples continued on last page Breakdown By Legal Problem Area Total 13,759 People Family 5,899 People Housing 3,711 People Juvenile 1,814 People Education 1,077 People 1,258 People Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc. - 2 Family 43% Housing 27% Juvenile 13% Education 8% 9%

3 Services Legal Services Than Direct Legal Representation The Housing Unit staff, through the Home Owner Initiative Program, provided 16 trainings to approximately 210 participants. Monthly presentations were made to first time homebuyers who attended workshops to assist them in the home buying process. The goal of these workshops is to ensure that first time homebuyers are knowledgeable about the responsibilities of home ownership and the process necessary to qualify and complete a home purchase. In addition, the Housing Unit made six presentations to community groups on landlord-tenant law and the availability of LAS housing programs. We provided training to low and moderate-income landlords in danger of losing their property due to uncorrected property violations and/or illegal activities occurring at their property. Training also included general landlord-tenant basics to first time landlords with the ultimate goal of helping them establish and maintain good business practices, which in turn will raise the quality of housing in the community. The participants indicated that the training increased their knowledge and that they would apply the knowledge that they acquired to their new businesses. The Family Law Unit provided 15 trainings to approximately 310 participants. To reach a broad range of potential clients and professionals, presentations were conducted at colleges and universities, community centers, in our main offices, at the Hall of Justice, restaurants, women's' shelters and libraries. Topics included domestic violence, family offense training, divorces, legislative updates, social media training, the role of a domestic violence attorney, and domestic violence and its impact on custody proceedings. The Children's Unit provided five trainings to public school staff and parent groups on youth related issues, special education law, and student's rights and responsibilities to 96 individuals in a multi-county area. The Immigration Program provided six trainings this program year. They were conducted at local schools, churches, hospitals, and migrant centers. A total of 185 people attended. Support for Service Providers The Family Law Unit Senior Attorney provided 17 trainings to civil legal services advocates, law students at Albany Law School and medical students and medical professionals at The University of Rochester Psychology program. Approximately 174 participants were trained. Topics included Family Law, Domestic Violence, legislative updates, social media and confidentiality, and custody. The Housing Unit provided two trainings in the area of landlord-tenant law to volunteer attorneys from private law firms who participate in the Attorney of the Morning Program cosponsored by VLSP of Rochester. Approximately 18 participants were trained. The Immigration Program provided six trainings to 185 students, immigration professionals, migrant workers, and to the public. The Children's Unit provided five trainings to 96 individuals consisting of parent groups, school personnel, lawyers and other education professionals. Topics included Youth Rights & Advocacy, Special Education and Discipline of Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems. Number of People Benefited by Legal Services Than Direct Legal Representation Total: 795 People Community Legal Education: 795 People IOLA Project Grants Pro Bono Legal Services IOLA Funding Amount: $604,044 The IOLA grant was used to support the Family Law Unit, the Housing Unit, the Children's Unit, and the Immigration program. Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc. - 3

4 Services, continued Pro Bono Private Attorney Involvement LAS, in collaboration with Volunteer Legal Services Project (VLSP), administers the Attorney of The Morning Program in which private attorneys provide pro bono representation to tenants in the Rochester City Court. Services by pro bono attorneys are provided under the supervision and assistance of LAS Housing staff. Volunteer attorneys are scheduled to represent eligible tenants in Rochester City Court. LAS has two attorneys and a paralegal present in Court to assist the volunteers. The LAS paralegal screens the tenant for eligibility and refers the tenant to the volunteer attorney for representation. The LAS staff attorney is available to act as a mentor to volunteers if any problems arise. Since Landlord Tenant Court is in session every day, the calendar is complete in approximately 2-3 hours and most cases are resolved the same day, pro bono attorneys can participate on short notice and not be concerned that a case will involve long and protracted litigation that may compromise their regular caseload. Often scheduled attorneys bring other associates from their firms. In a program similar to the Attorney of the Morning Program, the Housing Unit works with Nixon Peabody and Harter Secrest & Emery two large law firms in Rochester, to host their summer associates as volunteer attorneys in Rochester City Court. Training is provided at each firm as part of the associates' orientation program. LAS procures judicial practice orders from the Fourth Department for each summer associate allowing them to represent clients under the supervision of a Housing staff attorney Summer associates who participate in this program often continue to volunteer in landlord tenant court after they are hired permanently at their firms. Pro Bono Statistics During , volunteer lawyers participating in our program achieved the following results: Number of cases completed: 203 Hours contributed: 144 Dollar value of services*: $21,600 *estimated at $150 per hour Sources of Funding Total $ 2,242,384 IOLA Grants $ 604,044 City and County $ 626,979 State Funding $ 418,278 United Way $ 348,583 $ 244,500 City and County 28% State Funding 19% United Way 15% IOLA Grants 27% 11% Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc. - 4

5 Outcomes for Clients continued from page 2 immigrant/refugee advocacy group, to assist Burmese immigrant and refugee families in the Rochester area. In addition to representing victims of domestic violence, we provide general information and advice to that population about the American legal system. ecently collaboration between the LAS R attorney and these organizations resulted in the arrest, conviction, and incarceration of a very dangerous domestic violence repeat offender. In addition to the physical violence, the abuser Snapshot of Accomplishments continued from page 1 The Attorney for the Child Program provided legal representation to 3925 youth in Monroe County Family Court through the Attorney for the Child Program (AFC). The AFC, formerly known as The Law Guardian Program, is wholly funded by the NYS office of Court Administration. For the IOLA program year, Legal Aid society provided services to 9441 individuals. In addition to ensuring access to the court system through the direct representation for our clients, the work of the Legal Aid Society has a direct impact on the community. The dollars spent in funding civil legal services translate to an economic benefit to the community as a whole. Providing representation to victims of domestic perpetrated economic fraud on the victim. Our client disconnected her phone service so she could not receive phone calls from the abuser. Unbeknownst to her, the abuser reconnected the service after obtaining her passwords illegally. The LAS attorney was able to negotiate with the phone service provider to prevent the victim from having to pay several hundred dollars on the illegally re-connected service in addition to helping her obtain a permanent order of protection. violence provides for individual safety and safety of children. Economically, reducing violence, results in a reduction of costs in medical care, mental health care, lost wages, lost quality of life, and property damage. Obtaining child support, maintenance and the division of property keeps families from needing to rely on public assistance. Ensuring that money judgments are not improperly obtained helps secure an individual's credit so that they are able to be a stable economic participant. For the 12 months captured in this report, LAS obtained $605, for the benefit of our clients. On a monthly basis, clients receive $70, in child support, $8, in maintenance (alimony) payments and $572 per month for childcare and medical expenses. Legal Aid Society of Rochester, NY, Inc. - 5