Wisconsin 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—Legal Action of Wisconsin’s (LAW) Eviction Defense Project (EDP) is featured in a Legal Services Corporation brief released today that showcases the critical role pro bono attorneys play 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.
Eviction filings in Wisconsin have increased after statewide eviction protections ended in May 2020 and the CDC moratorium expired in August 2021. A recent spike in Milwaukee saw an 81% increase over the average number of eviction filings for the month of February.
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. Without representation, most tenants will lose their cases and face eviction. However, access to representation flips the odds, with a large majority of tenants who receive legal services able to delay or avoid eviction.
LAW launched the EDP in 2017 to provide court-based, free legal aid for low-income tenants who are facing eviction. The program is a pro bono partnership with Quarles & Brady LLP, the Milwaukee Justice Center, Marquette University Law School, the Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee County Court.
Pro bono volunteers and staff from partner organizations assist tenants at every stage of the eviction process in the two counties with the state’s highest eviction rates, Milwaukee and Dane. People facing eviction can access services at one of the walk-in clinics at each courthouse.
Prior to the start of the EDP, less than one percent of tenants were represented by an attorney. In just two years, tenant representation saw a more than five-fold increase. Ninety percent of clients surveyed reported dismissal of the eviction, via stipulation or court order.
To learn more about this and other model programs and the challenges pro bono attorneys face in eviction cases, read the full brief here.