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Recent News & Articles

Advocating for the Rights of the Formerly Incarcerated Under the Fair Chance Act

| By Lia Dun
Categories: Advocacy, Homepage, News
someone's hand holding a pen over a job application
Bay Area Legal Aid attorneys submitted public comments this month on the Fair Chance Act, a California law that prevents employers from asking about a person’s conviction history during the job application process. BayLegal applauded the protections the Act extends to formerly incarcerated individuals while also urging the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) …

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Advocacy Win for MUNI Riders in San Francisco

| By BayLegal
Categories: Advocacy, Homepage, News
Update: As follow up to last week’s great news on creation of the SF Access Pass, BayLegal attorney Raegan Joern gave public comment to the SF Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) thanking it for the Access Pass and asking that it to go further by extending the moratorium on fare evasion citations until shelter in place …

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BayLegal Hosts First Remote Name and Gender Marker Change Clinic

| By Lia Dun
Categories: Homepage, News, Other
Person holds trans flag, which flies behind them in the wind
On November 21, Bay Area Legal Aid hosted its first remote Name and Gender Marker Change clinic and information session. In partnership with the UCSF Child and Adolescent Gender Clinic and with volunteers from PayPal, we worked with 21 individuals to answer general questions about the name and gender marker change process and health access …

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ALERT: Social Security Benefits Suspension Scam

| By BayLegal
Categories: Homepage, News, Other
We are receiving reports from the Social Security Administration of ongoing attempts to defraud Social Security recipients via letter and phone. In some cases these fraudulent communications try to convince recipients that their benefits are in danger of suspension due to the Economic Impact Payment (EIP) received during the pandemic. In all cases, if you …

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BayLegal’s 2020 Annual Campaign Launches: A Note from Our Executive Director

| By BayLegal
Categories: Announcements, eNewsletter Story, Executive Director blog, Fundraising, Homepage, News
Genevieve Richardson, Executive Director
Dear friends and supporters of Bay Area Legal Aid,   As we launch BayLegal’s 2020 Annual Campaign, I am so grateful that with your support we are able to address the critical needs of our clients.  As the public health and economic stresses intensify and deepen our clients face increased housing instability, exposure to predatory lending …

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Bay Area Legal Aid Reaches Settlement to Protect Survivors of Domestic Violence

| By Lia Dun
Categories: Attorneys, Client Story, eNewsletter Story, Homepage, Litigation, News
This fall, Bay Area Legal Aid reached a final settlement in a lawsuit filed in 2019 to compel the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) to fulfill its legal and ethical responsibilities to survivors of domestic violence. The lawsuit was filed in response to SFPD’s long-term failure to comply with California Family Code § 6228, a …

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BayLegal’s Systems Advocacy During the Pandemic: An Overview and Update

| By BayLegal
Categories: Advocacy, eNewsletter Story, Homepage, News
group of lawyers or corporate businessmen and businesswomen crossing two cliffs with the help of a justice scale acting as a bridge to legal services
Our expertise in advocating for clients’ individual legal needs while simultaneously identifying and pursuing opportunities for broader systemic change has been critical in response to the pandemic. I hope you will read more about our specific advocacy initiatives since the world changed in March 2020 and anticipated needs – it is because of your support that we are able to …

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URGENT ALERT: You Do Not Need to Pay Any Money to Get Your Economic Impact Payment

| By BayLegal
Categories: Homepage, News
ALERT: You do not need to pay any money to get your Economic Impact Payment. If you need help accessing your Economic Impact Payment, there are many high quality and free services available for you, including: United Way’s 211 Economic Impact Payment Helpline – (844) 322-3639 or https://www.211.org/pages/stimuluscheck IRS’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites – to …

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Oakland City Attorney Launches Housing Justice Initiative and Know Your Rights Campaign

| By BayLegal
Categories: Homepage, News
October 22, 2020: Today Oakland City Attorney Barbara Parker announced the launch of the Housing Justice Initiative. Building on the work of the City Attorney’s office to protect tenant rights during the pandemic against illegal self-help evictions, lockouts and utility shutoffs, and other abuses that threaten renters’ ability to safely shelter in place, the HJI …

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BayLegal Opposes the City of Oakland’s Proposed “Homeless Encampment Management Policy”

| By BayLegal
Categories: Advocacy, Homepage, News
On Friday, October 16, Bay Area Legal Aid attorneys submitted public comment strongly opposing the City of Oakland’s proposed “Homeless Encampment Management Policy.” Implementation of the policy as written would result in unconstitutional seizures of property and denial of due process rights to those living unsheltered in Oakland. It would needlessly increase policing, accelerate the …

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Working to Protect Accessible and Representative Juries in Alameda County Misdemeanor Trials

| By BayLegal
Categories: Advocacy, Homepage, News
BayLegal has submitted a letter urging that the Alameda County Superior Court reconsider its plan to eliminate local jury panels and to institute county-wide jury pools for misdemeanor trials. Traveling across-county to serve on a jury would be a tremendous hardship for low-income people, particularly those with disabilities and during the pandemic. Our clients’ decreased …

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Advocating for Due Process Rights for Our Immigrant Survivor Clients

| By BayLegal
Categories: Advocacy, Homepage, News
The BayLegal Regional Immigration team has submitted comments opposing proposed Executive Office of Immigration Review rules that would strip important due process rights from noncitizens before the immigration court and Board of Immigration Appeals. The proposed regulations would dramatically alter the BIA appellate process, prevent many noncitizens with immediate relatives or asylum eligibility from reopening …

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