The Legal Aid Society

Join us in congratulating The Legal Aid Society’s Education Law Project (ELP) for receiving a $7,200 award from the New York Bar Foundation for the Expanding Access to Education for Low-Income New Yorkers Project in 2024! With this funding, ELP has attended a national conference to better inform their advocacy efforts; developed and presented internal trainings for LAS staff to identify and support clients with education law issues; and created Know Your Rights materials that are now on our website and distributed to clients - ensuring that New Yorkers have access to critical information to receive the assistance they need. The Know Your Rights resources are aimed at empowering communities and providing low-income families the tools they need to navigate the educational system and secure vital support services. We extend our sincere thanks to the New York Bar Foundation for supporting our mission to promote educational equity. Congratulations to the ELP for their continued dedication and hard work in expanding access to education for all New Yorkers! Learn more about the resources offered by our Education Law Project here: https://lnkd.in/eEwEiZu9

Legal Aid is suing five solar panel companies for targeting seniors and people of color with deceptive business practices. “Mrs. Campbell is just one victim of many across New York and the country of a solar panel industry that uses misleading advertisements and misrepresentations about lower electricity bills and instead unknowingly saddle people into unaffordable loans,” Jennifer Levy, attorney, Foreclosure Prevention Unit, Legal Aid. It’s reminiscent of the subprime mortgage crisis which ultimately brought down our economy. We’re taking action: https://lnkd.in/ex7VENe5

The 2024 Associates’ Campaign raised an impressive $385K from over 1,000 individuals from 25 firms to support our vital work on behalf of low-income New Yorkers. Last week, we celebrated this year’s campaign with firm captains, participants, New Leadership Program Board members, and Legal Aid staff at City Winery. The night provided everyone an opportunity to celebrate and learn more about Legal Aid’s work while top firms were given awards.? Thank you to all the firms who participated in this year’s campaign, and we look forward to building on this success next year.? View the full list of award winners and participating firms here: https://lnkd.in/eTKf3uv9??

What does justice look like to you? To us, it looks like a city full of community resources. That’s why Legal Aid is proud to announce ‘Do NYC Justice,’ our new 5-borough community resource guide. Whether you are looking for housing help, violence prevention/intervention programs, job training, mental health services, youth programs and more, ‘Do NYC Justice’ has got your back. Thank you to the amazing Kettle team for your creative collaboration. Check out ‘Do NYC Justice’ here: legalaidnyc.org/justice.

NEW: We're taking our mission to deliver justice in every borough into the digital space! Check out 'Do NYC Justice,' our new 5-borough community resource guide. Whether you’re looking for housing help, violence prevention/intervention, mental health services, teen programs, job training, or more, justice is just a click away. Get your copy: legalaidnyc.org/justice

The Legal Aid Society proudly participated in this year's Lavender Law Conference - the most prominent LGBTQ+ law conference in the U.S. - reinforcing our commitment to advancing LGBTQ+ rights and advocating for marginalized communities. Legal Aid highlighted ongoing efforts to ensure equal justice for all, while fostering critical conversations about the unique challenges faced by LGBTQ+ individuals in the legal system - including the life-threatening conditions TGNCNBI people face in jails and prisons in New York City. The presentations included: State of the Law: Addressing Systemic Racial Barriers Impacting Black LGBTQ Communities, and Its Perpetuation Through Emerging Policies and Legal Doctrines The Struggles Faced by Incarcerated Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, Intersex and Nonbinary People: Using a Multi-Pronged Harm Reduction Approach to Effective Reform Breaking the Cycles of Criminalization: A Joint Civil and Criminal Defense Approach To learn more about our LBGTQ+ Law & Policy Unit: https://lnkd.in/gpACxvEY #LavenderLaw #LavLaw

NEW: Legal Aid and Milbank LLP filed a lawsuit against the City over the NYPD’s practice of illegally accessing, using, and disclosing sealed records of youth ages 7-17. “The NYPD must stop perpetually punishing young people,” Kate Wood, attorney, Legal Aid. More: https://lnkd.in/ecDqT_XE

$631,268,818. That’s how much taxpayers have shelled out to cover NYPD misconduct lawsuits since 2018. The bill for 2024 so far is $82,168,417. That’s more than the full amounts for three of the previous six years. If trends continue, 2024 will see the highest taxpayer bill for NYPD misconduct in years - $140,000,000. These eye-popping figures underscore how much of the public’s money—which could be used to build stronger communities—goes towards propping up the NYPD. And that’s without considering their $11B+ budget. The amount of money we divert away from communities toward the NYPD matters to every New Yorker who wants to live in a thriving city, especially low-income New Yorkers of color who struggle to navigate unjust systems on their road to lead dignified lives, full of opportunity. After all, the strongest communities are those with the most investments. Learn more about our work to hold the NYPD accountable and build thriving communities: https://lnkd.in/ePAjfQKk

NEW: Today, Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defenders, and Milbank LLP filed a contempt motion against the NYC Department of Correction (DOC) for its ongoing failure to provide medical care to incarcerated New Yorkers. "Incarcerated New Yorkers have a right to access medical care while in custody, and the DOC’s continued failure to comply with the law and any semblance of humanity is beyond the pale. As such, we’re asking a court to again hold them in contempt for this abject cruelty," Veronica Vela, supervising attorney, Prisoners' Rights Project, Legal Aid. “People wait in pain and fear as their chronic conditions deteriorate, their medical issues become severe, and their urgent requests for emergency care are ignored. DOC’s indifference to the health of the people in its custody cannot be allowed to continue," Alyssa Briody, senior attorney, Civil Rights & Law Reform Unit, Brooklyn Defenders. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eg69hg_K

"Legal Aid's impact on the lives of the voiceless is immeasurable. I'm truly honored and humbled to lead this storied institution," LAS Attorney-in-Chief & CEO Twyla Carter reflects on her two years. More: https://lnkd.in/emSR6v2w