Elizabeth’s Family

A week before Christmas, “Elizabeth” and her two young children were facing an eviction in housing court. Elizabeth had fallen behind in paying rent after leaving an abusive relationship. Her only argument for stopping the eviction was that she had children, no money, and nowhere to go. Although sympathetic, the judge explained to the tenant that she had no legal basis to stay the execution.

Fortunately, a Community Legal Aid Attorney happened to be in housing court at that moment. That same day, the CLA Attorney filed an appearance on behalf of Elizabeth and convinced the judge to stay the execution for 2 days so that CLA could assist her in avoiding homelessness.

It turned out that Elizabeth and her children were eligible for rental assistance. Another CLA advocate worked tirelessly over a 24 hour period to help Elizabeth submit the application for assistance, and with CLA’s advocacy, her application was approved IN ONE DAY!

With written proof of approval for assistance, Elizabeth’s landlord agreed that the family could stay in their apartment.