The Family Law Clinic assists self-represented litigants, 70-80% of all family law cases, in preparing legal arguments and documents for the family law courts. Parties receive much-needed help on issues such as divorce, injunctions, and custody matters, and students gain hands-on experience in this elective course. If your legal problems fall into one or more categories where a legal aid program can help you, we recommend that you contact them first. If legal aid can`t help you, the next step is to contact the Bar Association`s referral service. This is the fifth pro bono legal clinic in Sonoma County, offered by Empire College School of Law since 2000. Previously, clinics have dealt with seniors` law, disability law, family law and small claims law. Santa Rosa is also home to the Sonoma County Bar Association. The association offers a free legal referral program called The Sonoma County Lawyer Referral Service. When you call the referral service, you can speak to a lawyer who will listen to your problem and determine if you need a lawyer and, if so, which one. This elective course offers students real opportunities for client advice and a variety of poverty law issues. The clinic allows students to interact with clients, provide legal advice under the supervision of a lawyer, write simple briefs, and refer clients to legal and non-legal resources. Students may work in the areas of unlawful detention, injunctions, elder abuse, and guardianship. Students write legal documents and correspondence under the supervision of a practicing lawyer.

Some students may have the opportunity to attend court hearings. We help with civil law issues such as eviction, domestic violence, elder abuse, disaster relief and much more. Sonoma Co. Legal Aid: 542-1290. Assists low-income residents of Sonoma County with defense against eviction, landlords/tenants, domestic violence, and legal advice for the elderly. Stop to be screened for an appt. Mon-Thu 9:15-11:30 / Mon, Tue, Thu 13:15-16. Closed Fr. 144 South E St., Suite 100 (Map).

Se habla espanol. legalaidsc.org Legal Aid of Sonoma County was established in 1958 and provides legal services to low-income families and children. His organization runs four main programs through its Crisis Legal Advocacy Center: When faced with lawsuits, at-risk residents turn to us for help, often when there is nowhere else to turn. Since its opening in 2000, supervising lawyers, in collaboration with law students from the Empire, have assisted more than 2,200 clients in the preparation of legal documents and as lawyers in various cases. Examples: At Empire College School of Law, our second, third, and fourth year Juris Doctor students can volunteer their time or earn academic credit for 15 hours of telephone counseling and five hours of personal counseling per week in Santa Rosa Small Claims Court. We cover a variety of California small claims courts. The most common are disputes between landlords and tenants, unfulfilled contracts, complaints about contractors and disputes between neighbors. About 50 percent of the people student counselors talk to have already filed claims or received a subpoena. The others are trying to determine if they have a case. Study clients reported significant improvements in their lives as a result of the support they received from civil legal aid. Buy legal self-help books (called Nolo Press books) from bookstores or the Nolo Press website: www.nolo.com There`s no denying that hiring a lawyer is often an expensive endeavor. Too often, the cost of hiring a lawyer prevents many people from being able to help themselves and their families in the court system.

However, in some cases, it is possible to obtain free legal aid, thanks to a common industry practice called «pro bono» work. This pro bono legal clinic is staffed by second-, third- and fourth-year law students from Empire College School of Law. They are supported by students in the college`s paralegal program for bilingual translation and other services. These high-quality pro bono legal services are for individuals and families who otherwise cannot afford them. Legal document assistants prepare legal forms for you, but cannot provide you with legal advice, explanations, opinions, or recommendations. They charge a fee for their services. You can find several of them under Legal Records Assistants in the yellow pages of the phone book. «We are so pleased with their quality that for years we have only hired students from the Empire. The results were excellent for us and our clerks. Students have written wonderful legal briefs used by the California Supreme Court in the Three Strikes cases, tried jury trials in our local courts, and made significant contributions to my office. Sonoma County Deputy Public Defender Bruce Kinnison, professor of criminal law, according to a landmark study by the Center for Community Solutions, civil legal aid has a lasting impact.