Posted January 9, 20262:00 pm
Thank you for being a Partner in Justice! Your role as an ambassador for Legal Aid is invaluable for supporting our work and our clients. 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.
PIJ 2026 Intro Session – We hosted this session to provide an overview of Legal Aid’s work and the Partners in Justice program – there are so many ways to support our work and get involved! If you weren’t able to join this online session on June 16th, you can watch the 30-minute video here.
Check out our open volunteer opportunities and sign up to come along or get some colleagues together and come as a group to a Brief Advice Clinic: Attorneys - Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
MARK YOUR CALENDARS! – Upcoming Events
JAM for Justice 2026! It’s that time of year again and Jam for Justice (the best party of the year!) is coming up on August 27th. Tickets are on sale now: JAM for JUSTICE 2026 – and we need your help to spread the word to your teams and wider networks to come out for a great time and a great cause – all proceeds support Legal Aid’s on-going work in the community.
For anyone who can’t attend the event – they can still support Legal Aid though the JAM for Justice raffle! Prizes will be announced soon and tickets or available now: Jam for Justice 2026 Tickets are $25 for 1, or a pack of 5 for $100!
2026 prizes so far:
- Suite for a group at a regular season Cleveland Monsters game (courtesy of Benesch)
- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Roller Annual Membership and swag bag (courtesy of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)
- Hilton hotel downtown – One night’s accommodation for 2 people plus $100 gift certificate for the Burnham Restaurant (courtesy of Hilton Cleveland Downton)
- Legal Aid Society of Cleveland swag bag
- More prizes to come – stay tuned!......
Request an in-house Legal Aid CLE presentation for your team – contact Shauna to request a date! smendez@lasclev.org or 216 861 5415
Become a sponsor - Law Firm and Corporate sponsorship is essential to our ability to host events like Jam for Justice – and we are always looking for new sponsors to come on board. If your firm isn’t already a sponsor for this year – please share our sponsor info with your team 2026 Sponsorship - Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
IN THE NEWS:
Rent escrow helps tenants gain leverage for needed repairs
Legal Aid seeking post-grad fellowship applicants! (deadline 7/15/2026)
2026 Summer Associates & Volunteers Announced
IMPACT CORNER
Please use the following stories of real Legal Aid client experiences to share examples of the impact our work is making on the communities we serve.
Rosalie (name changed to protect privacy) was a loving and devoted mother to her autistic son, Henry. When he started school, Henry had an individualize education plan (IEP) to support his special needs, but Rosalie grew concerned when she learned he was struggling in some subjects, accused of threatening other students, and was temporarily removed from class.
Rosalie was unhappy with what was happening and felt the IEP needed to be adjusted to allow Henry to be moved from to a special education classroom. Unfortunately, the school told her that there was no room for Henry in the special education classroom. When Rosalie discussed the matter with her physician at Cleveland Clinic, she was referred to an attorney through the Medical-Legal Partnership with Legal Aid.
At one point, Rosalie had agreed with the school to home school Henry, but she wanted better for him. Her attorney attended an IEP meeting with her and school officials to discuss an alternative placement for him and all parties agreed that Henry would be assigned an aide that could give him one-on-one attention. When they all met again, they realized that the aide was not enough and agreed to try a private school.
With the help of Rosalie’s Legal Aid attorney, Henry was able to get the supports that he needed to be successful at school – something that may not have occurred without Legal Aid’s help.
Faith (name changed to protect privacy) had been living in her rental for five years. When she learned that the landlord had put the property up for sale, she asked of the realtor if she needed to consider moving, but was reassured that she had nothing to worry about.
Things quickly changed when the new owner took over the property - the new landlord refused to complete the paperwork needed to accept Faith’s section 8 housing voucher and wanted her to pay the full rent directly. She eventually received a 30-day eviction notice because the landlord wanted to make her unit his primary residence.
Faith was frustrated and willing to move but needed time for the housing organization to inspect and approve a new rental before she could move. She and her young child had a number of health issues and couldn’t risk being homeless - that’s when she called Legal Aid for help.
Her Legal Aid Attorney reviewed her case and requested a continuance, allowing Faith enough time to move into her new rental once CMHA approved the property. The court granted the request, and she then began negotiating with the landlord. They agreed that if Faith paid the portion of her rent that was owed for one month and that she moved out by the agreed upon date that he would dismiss the eviction.
Faith understood that her case could have been resolved without having to go to court but knew that if she did not have a Legal Aid attorney advocating for her that her landlord would not have been as willing to cooperate. She was grateful that her and her child were able to transition from one home to another without worrying about being unhoused.
Partners in Justice are our first point of contact at law firms and corporations - sharing valuable information, participating in clinics and CLEs, and encourage colleagues to support our work in a variety of ways. Please read this one-pager and share it with those who are interested in #ExtendingJustice and joining this group.
MAKE A GIFT TODAY:
Support Legal Aid with a gift and encourage your colleagues to do the same – Donate now.
Please follow Legal Aid on social media and share our posts – We’re active on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, and BlueSky –follow us!
Questions? Contact Shauna Mendez: 216-861-5415 or smendez@lasclev.org
Visit here often to:
- Grab timely messaging you can use for internal communications at your firm/organization.
- Learn about our latest news and events.
- Connect with us.
You are a valued advocate for our mission, and we appreciate your enthusiastic advocacy for Legal Aid!
Updated June 26, 2026