Minnesota Eviction Defense Project Highlighted in National Study of Pro Bono Impacts
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Carl Rauscher
Director of Communications and Media Relations
rauscherc@lsc.gov
202-295-1615
WASHINGTON—Volunteer Lawyers Network’s (VLN) Housing Law Program is featured in a Legal Services Corporation brief released today that showcases the critical role of pro bono attorneys in eviction defense.
The findings are part of a congressionally-directed study, The Effect of State & Local Laws on Evictions, to investigate the unmet legal needs surrounding the eviction crisis in the United States.
Prior to the pandemic, Minnesota had more than 1,000 eviction filings per month. Eviction filings fell sharply when state and national renter protections were in place, but since these have expired, filings have been steadily increasing. Filing rates are now spiking. For the month of March 2022, filings were up 24% from the historical average.
In the U.S., about one-in-three renter households will experience a housing-related civil legal problem such as eviction in a year, but the vast majority will receive little or no help in navigating their legal issues. Currently, family law cases get much more support from pro bono attorneys than housing cases, even though rental-related issues are one of the most common civil legal problems.
Nationally, landlords are four times more likely to be represented in eviction cases than tenants. Better leveraging pro bono services for tenants facing eviction is essential to addressing the eviction crisis.
Since early 2000, the VLN Housing Law Program has worked in partnership with other legal service organizations to operate a legal clinic at the Housing Court in Hennepin County. VLN’s Housing Program has expanded to include volunteers providing services through phone clinics, housing court clinics and full representation in eviction, record sealing and rent escrow cases in Hennepin, Ramsey and Anoka counties.
Dedicated VLN staff are on-site at the clinics to conduct intake, provide consultation and advice to the pro bono volunteers and serve as backup attorneys for advice services to prevent long wait times for potential clients. Volunteering attorneys receive a comprehensive set of training videos, seminars and materials to support them in representing tenants and understanding housing laws.
From 2017 to 2020, VLN provided over 6,500 housing services, with private landlord/tenant issues making up three-quarters of all cases. VLN has seen 96% of tenants who receive full representation, and 83% who receive limited representation, win or settle their cases. Tenants without legal services won or settled 62% of the time.
To learn more about this and other model programs and the challenges pro bono attorneys face in eviction cases, read the full brief here.