Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto

Founded in East Palo Alto, Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto is a nonprofit offering legal services that improve the lives of low-income families throughout the region. They specialize in immigration, housing, workers’ rights, records clearance, and consumer protection.

Their team of attorneys, paralegals and social worker work side-by-side with low-income communities and partner with community-based organizations, churches, and schools to bring about lasting change. They train and support community members to navigate the legal system and exercise their rights. We achieve their mission using multiple, innovative strategies, including community education, individual legal advice and representation, legal assistance to community groups, policy advocacy, and impact litigation.

CLSEPA trains and mentors volunteer attorneys who offer their services pro bono to their clients. CLSEPA also give Know-Your-Rights presentations to raise awareness of immigration services. Furthermore, they engage in local and state advocacy with policymakers, government agencies, social service providers, and law enforcement to protect the rights of immigrant families and youth and ensure that their communities remain safe spaces for families:

Economic Advancement

The Economic Advancement Program (“EAP”) strives to help low-income community members maximize their earning potential and access opportunities for their families by protecting their income from wage theft, scams, or fraud and improving their chances for future employment. EAP prioritizes cases where it is difficult for clients to find or afford legal representation. EAP also prioritizes cases involving immigrant workers and the reentry population, who face barriers due to their criminal records.

Affordable Housing

Without affordable housing, firefighters, police, teachers and other essential service workers leave, and businesses can’t find employees. Traffic worsens as people move farther from their jobs and spend more time commuting. Homelessness and relocation destabilize the home life and schooling of young children, compromising their academic efforts and ultimately keeping them stuck in poverty. Preserving safe and affordable housing is a tool for combating a host of social ills.

For over 15 years, CLSEPA’s housing program has been helping tenants stay in their homes with a particular focus on preserving rent-stabilized tenancies. CLSEPA has helped hundreds of tenants resolve disputes with landlords and defend their rights to safe and habitable housing. Their services also help reduce the hardship of moving and mitigate the effects of an eviction so families can stabilize and recover quickly. CLSEPA also provides Know-Your-Rights presentations to raise awareness of tenant rights. If you are a tenant experiencing an eviction or rental increase, please contact (650)-326-6440.

Immigration

CLSEPA understands that people come to the United States for a variety of purposes, and they are committed to helping vulnerable immigrants find a path to legal residency. We help their clients learn about and apply for forms of immigration relief that they may be eligible for. Their services focus on helping immigrant survivors of domestic violence and other crimes, refugees and asylum seekers, immigrant youth and young adults and immigrants facing deportation in court. To request immigration services, please call (650) 326-6440 for a consultation.