When a landlord wants to evict a tenant, they take the tenant to Housing Court. In court, landlords almost always have a lawyer advocating for them, while tenants rarely do. When tenants do have lawyers, they are much less likely to be evicted.
To make sure people facing eviction have a better chance of staying in their homes, advocates successfully got New York City to pass the Right To Counsel bill in 2017. This new law guarantees a free lawyer to low-income tenants in Housing Court. But many tenants don’t know they have this right, don’t know how to get a lawyer, or don’t understand that a lawyer can make a big difference in the outcome of their case.
To get the word out, CUP teamed up with Housing Court Answers, the Right to Counsel Coalition, and designers Hanah Ho, Chelsea Atwell, and Ida Woldemichael to create Get Support in Housing Court. This fold-out poster explains who has the right to a lawyer, how to find your lawyer, and all the ways that a lawyer can help a tenant.
Get Support in Housing Court was launched virtually at Housing Court Answers’ annual conference to an audience of over 250 people. The Right to Counsel Coalition will use this guide as an organizing and teaching tool for the 30 organizations that make up their coalition. Tenant organizers will use the guide to educate tenants on the protections Right to Council provides, how to access them, and to reassure tenants they can successfully fight eviction threats from their landlords. Housing Court Answers also plans to distribute the guide at their tables in Housing Court and at their city-wide trainings and community outreach meetings.