Posted September 26, 20249:00 am
last updated 9/26/2024
Thank you for being a Partner in Justice! This toolkit has resources to help you promote Legal Aid with your colleagues. If you have specific questions, toggle to the bottom of the page for staff contact info.
Legal Aid's 119th Annual Meeting
Ruby Bridges – civil rights icon, activist, author – is the featured keynote speaker at The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland’s 119th Annual Meeting. The Monday, November 25, 2024 event features an afternoon program and reception at the Hilton Cleveland Downtown. Click here for more info.
The November 25 Legal Aid event will begin promptly at 2:00 p.m. (doors open at 1:30 p.m.). The one-hour program (CLE credit pending for attorneys) will be followed by a social reception with food and drinks. Ms. Bridges will deliver her keynote remarks via conversation with Lori Stokes, an award-winning American broadcast journalist and Legal Aid supporter.
Pro Bono Month 2024
Throughout the month of October, Legal Aid will be honoring the American Bar Association’s National Celebration of Pro Bono.
Pro Bono Week, October 20-26, draws attention to the increasing need for pro bono participation during harsh economic times. It is also a chance to thank those who give their time year-round to this important work. Legal Aid is especially grateful for all our amazing volunteers who, in 2023, handled approximately 20% of the cases we closed that year. We simply could not serve as many people without our dedicated volunteer attorneys. Get involved and sign up to volunteer here: lasclev.org/volunteer/register
As part of our celebration, Legal Aid – in partnership with numerous bar associations, the judiciary, community-based organizations, and volunteer attorneys – will host a variety of events throughout the 5 counties Legal Aid serves. Events will include volunteer opportunities, CLE programs, networking events, and much more! To see a full list of events, visit lasclev.org/2024probonoweek
Continuing Legal Education opportunities
To help encourage pro bono, and keep current volunteers up-to-date, Legal Aid offers a range of CLE Attorney Training sessions throughout the year? See our calendar for upcoming opportunities and share them within your organization. We can also tailor an "access to justice" CLE session for your team: simply contact Legal Aid to discuss your needs and we can set up a virtual or in-person session that will provide 1.0 hour of Continuing Legal Education credit to everyone who attends.
Participation Report Updates
Legal Aid staff are happy to provide an updated participation report throughout the year. This report details your organization's roster, fundraising and volunteer updates, as well as total participation percentages. Reach out to our team at 216-861-5415 for an updated report!
Quick Videos
Legal Aid has a terrific YouTube channel with informative videos on Legal Aid's mission, practice, and volunteering. Here are a few example short videos to share:
For pro bono volunteers - Legal-Ease: short videos to make pro bono easy!
Legal Aid in the News
As you spread the word about Legal Aid's good work - here are a few news items to share:
Matt Vincel, managing attorney of Legal Aid's Housing Practice Group, was recently quoted in Signal Cleveland's coverage of how 'junk fees' can trigger evictions.
Melissa Salamon, senior attorney in our Economic Justice Group, contributed to this story about how the state's efforts to claw back fake unemployment claims have caused real problems for workers.
Malanie Shakarian, Director of Development and Communications, and Maria Smith, Supervising Attorney, Housing - in conversation with Margaret Wong
Legal Aid Society moving to catalyze community change: Quo Vadis Cobb, Board President, and Colleen Cotter, Executive Director on Legal Aid’s growing partnership with the Cleveland Foundation and the long-term benefits of catalyzing community change.
Impact Stories
Here are two recent Legal Aid success stories. Feel free to copy/paste into an email to your organization or social media post:
Darcy (name changed to protect privacy) was happy to be starting a new job. She felt as if she was headed in the right direction. It would provide the income necessary to make sure that her child’s needs were met. Things were going well until she started to be sexually harassed. The harassment ranged from sexual comments to being sexually assaulted. Darcy went to her manager to complain. Her manager refused to acknowledge how horrible these incidents were. Instead, they made excuses for those who were sexually harassing her. When Darcy continued to complain, her manager became hostile and told her that she needed to leave the job. Darcy felt that her manager did not want to address the problems and forced her off the job because of her gender.
Darcy had to quit her job to avoid the continual abuse and the hostility stemming from her manager. She knew that her rights had been violated. That’s when she called Legal Aid for help. Her Legal Aid attorney helped Darcy file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Darcy’s attorney stayed by her side through the entire process including representing her at the EEOC mediation session. Her attorney was able to negotiate with Darcy’s former employer and won her an almost $20,000 settlement. Thanks to her Legal Aid Attorney, Darcy was able to be monetarily compensated for the indignities that she had suffered while she looked for another job.
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Jerry (name changed to protect privacy) was going through a rough time financially. At one point, his income from his job was not enough to cover his rent and he fell behind in his payments. He tried to catch up and managed to pay back some of the rent owed but it was not enough to keep his landlord from filing for his eviction. Jerry wanted to stay in his home so that his family would not be displaced, but he wasn’t sure how. He called Legal Aid for help.
His Legal Aid attorney advised him to apply for rental assistance from a local agency. Jerry’s application was approved. His attorney then negotiated with the landlord to allow Jerry to stay in the home and create a payment plan in exchange for the rental funds that Jerry was approved for. The landlord agreed and the eviction was dismissed. With the help of Legal Aid, Jerry and his family no longer had to worry about losing their home.
MAKE A GIFT TODAY:
Support Legal Aid with a gift, and encourage your colleagues to do the same – Donate now.
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Questions? Contact Shauna: 216-861-5415 or smendez@lasclev.org.
Visit here often to:
- Grab timely messaging you can use for internal communications at your firm/organization. Simply copy and paste!
- Learn about our latest events and news.
- Connect with us.
You are a valued advocate for our mission; we appreciate your passionate advocacy for Legal Aid!