DC SAFE to honor Trisha Monroe with the COVID-19 Hero Award

This week, Legal Aid’s Trisha Monroe, a Supervising Attorney in the Domestic Violence/Family Law Unit, will be honored by DC SAFE with the COVID-19 Hero Award, recognizing her “outstanding partnership, flexibility, and commitment to survivors during the pandemic.”

“I am humbled by this award, especially coming from our partners at DC SAFE, which does tremendous work on behalf of domestic violence survivors in DC,” Trisha said.

Since the start of the pandemic, Legal Aid’s Domestic Violence/Family Law Unit has responded to the increased needs of survivors in DC in a variety of ways, including by launching the Petition Assistance Project, which has helped hundreds of survivors (including 22 in a single day) file for Civil Protection Orders electronically. Read more →

How to Get Legal Help During the COVID-19 Outbreak

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, in order to protect our clients, staff, and volunteers, Legal Aid’s Northwest and Southeast offices are closed to the public. We are open for telephone or online intake.

If you have a legal problem, please call (202) 628-1161 or visit https://www.legalaiddc.org/online-intake/

For the latest information from the DC Courts, please visit https://www.dccourts.gov/coronavirus

For information about available community resources during the COVID-19 outbreak, please see our Non-Legal Resource Guide

For the latest information from the District government, please visit https://coronavirus.dc.gov/

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Inaugural Steptoe Housing Law Fellow Joins Legal Aid

The Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia is pleased to announce that Candace Mitchell has joined Legal Aid as the inaugural Steptoe Housing Law Fellow!

As part of Legal Aid’s Housing Law Unit, Ms. Mitchell will represent low-income tenants to prevent evictions and preserve access to safe and affordable housing in the District.

“We are thrilled to have such a skilled public advocate in Ms. Mitchell as the first Steptoe Housing Law Fellow,” said Paul Lee, Pro Bono Counsel at Steptoe. “In supporting this fellowship, our goal with Legal Aid is to expand pro bono legal services available for the preservation of affordable housing in the District.” Read more →

Legal Aid and Bread for the City Oppose Federal Threats to SNAP

Together with Bread for the City, Legal Aid filed comments yesterday strongly opposing the latest Trump Administration threat to the SNAP program that so many of our clients rely upon to help avoid hunger and meet their nutritional needs. In July 2019, the Administration proposed to limit the ability of the District and 41 other states to expand eligibility for SNAP through “Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility.” According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, implementation of this proposed rule would lead to over three million individuals losing SNAP benefits nationwide. Read more →

Legal Aid Mourns the Loss of Judge James Robertson, Former District Court Judge and Legal Aid Board Member

The Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia was saddened to learn of the passing of Judge James Robertson on September 7, 2019. Judge Robertson was appointed to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in 1994 and served as a federal judge for 15 years.

Prior to taking the bench, Judge Robertson was a partner at the law firm of Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering. While at Wilmer, Judge Robertson served on Legal Aid’s Board of Trustees from 1978 to 1980 and co-chaired the 2nd Annual Servant of Justice Awards Dinner in 1991. He presented the Servant of Justice Award to Augustus Palmer of Howard University in 1991. Read more →

Steptoe Launches Housing Law Fellowship at Legal Aid

The Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia is pleased to announce a new Housing Law Fellowship with the support of Steptoe & Johnson LLP.

The Steptoe Housing Law Fellowship will support Legal Aid’s Housing Law Unit, which works to prevent evictions, address dangerous housing conditions, and preserve affordable housing in the District. Unlike many other fellowships, the Steptoe Housing Law Fellowship will be open to applicants with experience, as well as recent law school graduates and judicial clerks. Read more →

Legal Aid’s 2019 Generous Associate Campaign Kicks Off!

The 2019 Generous Associates Campaign kicked off with an inspiring reception at Kirkland & Ellis on Tuesday evening.

Joined by campaign coordinators, co-chairs, and Legal Aid staff, Honorary Chairs Susan Davies and Neil Eggleston gave rousing remarks to kick off what we hope will be another record-breaking campaign this summer. Read more →

Legal Aid Expands Leadership Team with Two New Deputy Legal Directors

Legal Aid announced today that we have named Heather Latino and Jennifer Mezey as the organization’s first Deputy Legal Directors.

Heather and Jennifer will work with Chinh Le, who has been Legal Director at Legal Aid since July 2011. Over the past two decades, we have grown our legal program from eight attorneys to 56 paid attorneys on staff, impacting more than 10,000 people in 2018. Read more →

Legal Aid Mourns the Loss of Judge Patricia Wald

Legal Aid was saddened to learn of the passing of Judge Patricia Wald on January 12, 2019. Judge Wald became the first woman to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and became the D.C. Circuit’s first female Chief Judge in 1986. Read more →

Long Lines Persist at DC Safety Net Program Centers

This post was written by 2018 Legal Aid summer interns Tracey Zhang, David Wasserstein, Jenny Jiao, and Shelby Ferguson

Among the most illuminating experiences we had during our internship this summer was the opportunity to make early morning visits to the Department of Human Services (DHS) Service Centers to gather data about the lines of residents waiting outside. The District’s most vulnerable residents wait in line at DHS Service Centers to secure access to vital safety net benefits such as food stamps, health insurance, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Residents can be turned away once Service Centers reach capacity, and therefore often get in line long before sunrise. They must wait outside, even in the summer heat or bitter cold of winter. Many of the waiting customers are elderly, living with disabilities, or accompanied by young children, factors that make long waits even more difficult.

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