Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC)

Nelson Mullins proudly announces that partner Rich Otera has been recognized by the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC) for his outstanding pro bono legal work in California. ?Rich is one of only six recipients of the?2024 Awards of Merit?in the volunteer or board member category, a distinction granted to those who have shown exemplary dedication to justice within the California legal aid community this past year. Rich was honored at a special ceremony at this year’s?Pathways to Justice conference?in San Francisco on Oct. 30. Congratulations, Rich! Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dVPJuyVy

We're excited to share the news that several disability-led organizations, including member orgs Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) and Disability Rights California, have come together?to form the new California Disability Leadership Alliance. This coalition aims to influence and improve policies for disabled people in California. Together, the Alliance and disability partners created this State of the State report, which provides an overview of California’s gaps in disability rights in areas like health care, education, transportation, employment and housing. The goal of the report is to shine a light on the inequality in state legislation and enforcement and work towards a more equitable future for all Californians with disabilities. Read the report here! https://lnkd.in/gX9J-TdS

One of just six recipients of the 2024 Award of Merit from the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC), Robins Kaplan is recognized for its role in securing a landmark ruling that mandates housing for thousands of disabled homeless veterans at the West LA VA campus. Read more about this important victory for veterans: https://lnkd.in/gFxjkQ9t. #VeteransRights #LegalVictory #LAACAward #LandmarkRuling #AccessToJustice #CommunityImpact

Congratulations to LAFLA Special Counsel on Immigration Michael Ortiz on receiving the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC)'s Award of Merit in the category of Legal Services Attorney! ?? This award recognizes a demonstrated commitment to the delivery of legal services through community-based work, litigation, and advocacy. According to the selection committee, 2024 was an especially competitive year—but they were "blown away" by Michael's contributions to justice. Michael will be honored at LAAC's upcoming Pathways to Justice Conference on Wednesday, October 30.

So honored to work at the Child Care Law Center! On Tuesday, Giani Interiano Brown, Esq., Mary Ignatius from Parent Voices, Ana Andrade and I hosted a panel for State Bar of California and Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC)'s Pathways to Justice 2024. Our panel, "Creating Racially Just Child Care Laws Through Community Engagement" centered on two racist policies we helped change by partnering with child care provider and parent advocates: (1) Senate Bill 234 (Skinner, 2019) that clarified and increased housing protections for in home child care providers and (2) Assembly Bill 92 (Gómez Reyes)/Assembly Bill 116 that reformed child care family fees to provide relief to thousands of families. These equitable policy solutions centered on the needs of the communities that were directly impacted and their input and ideas led the work -- which is how all policy solutions should be crafted. So happy to work at a place that does this and thankful to have strong partnerships with our provider and parent advocate communities. ??

It was a privilege to be on the Shriver presentation panel at the #pathwaystojustice2024conference sponsored by the Judicial Council of California, the State Bar of California and the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC). The Shriver pilot projects are collaborative efforts between legal services programs and their local superior courts. Along with Keira Cumberland, Esq., the Housing Settlement Master of San Luis Obispo Superior Court , I was honored to present on the Shriver Housing portion. On our panel we also had the privilege of having Yolanda Leung the Senior Analyst with the Judicial Council of California, Antonia More the Director of Pro Bono Legal Services at the The Justice and Diversity Center of The Bar Association of San Francisco. As one of the original seven pilot projects awarded for court innovations, I developed the court’s Shriver Housing Mandatory Settlement Conference Program here in Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara . The local bar has been receptive and has embraced the housing mandatory settlement conference program. Indeed, in the last quarter alone, 93% of the cases had a full resolution at the mandatory settlement conference. I believe this happened because we have leveled the playing field with 84% of landlords having representation and 78% of the tenants having representation at the mandatory settlement conferences. Kudos to our local attorneys on both sides of the bar, particularly Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County who work together with respect and civility to transition disputes into workable solutions. The attorneys at Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County are on standby at the MSC’s should any unrepresented litigants need help. It is my hope that other courts, as already embraced by San Luis Obispo Superior Court , will also fold into their calendars a Shriver Mandatory Settlement Conference into their housing calendars. I am also thankful for all the other panelists on other issues who played a key role in making The Pathways to Justice 2024 Conference a success. Thank you also to the conference sponsors, the BIGGLESWORTH FAMILY FOUNDATION, the Practising Law Institute (PLI) and Cooley LLP for setting a foundation to make this event happen.

It's the rock stars of SoCal Self-Help Centers (quick, someone get me a copyright attorney!): Bertha Sanchez Hayden from Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Ana Maria Garcia from Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, and Ylianna Perez-Guerrero from Public Counsel presenting at the Pathways to Justice Conference organized by Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC), State Bar of California, and the Judicial Council of California. These great attorneys wrote the book on self-help!

We’re excited to share that LCCRSF took part in the 2024 Pathways to Justice Conference, where we showcased how we’re using AI innovations to make legal aid more accessible and close the justice gap. LCCRSF Pro Bono Director, Chriselle Raguro and Special Projects Attorney, Nikki Endsley, presented with Conor Malloy from the Law Center for Better Housing and Gail Quan from OneJustice on “Leveraging AI to Increase Access to Justice and Homelessness Prevention Services.” We unpacked real-world AI strategies from our community clinics, explored ethical AI practices, and painted a vision of how AI can help close the justice gap. A huge thank you to the Law Center for Better Housing's Rentervention Program for demonstrating how AI can transform homelessness prevention efforts—such as drafting landlord letters and reallocating resources to strengthen eviction defense services. We also extend our gratitude to the conference hosts: State Bar of California, Judicial Council of California and, Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC). LCCRSF is proud to be at the forefront of making legal aid more accessible for those most in need, by exploring and piloting AI innovations within the legal community.

Stephanie Barclay, Christy Ferioli, Lennon Bancroft and Amy McDonald attended the State Bar's Pathways to Justice conference this week with 300 other legal service providers. The conference was packed with innovative ideas for improving access to justice and delivery of critical legal services to vulnerable populations. We were honored to be invited to speak on a panel discussion about our Shriver Housing Program. Our team is coming back inspired and energized to serve our clients in need! Many thanks to the State Bar of California, Judicial Council of California, and Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC) for an excellent conference!