The Legal Aid Response to the Northern California Fires

 

 

October 24, 2017

Amidst the ashes, legal aid providers and pro bono volunteers are mobilizing

The devastation caused by the Northern California wildfires has been simply unprecedented. So far, over 8,000 buildings have been destroyed across over 200,000 acres. While firefighters work to contain the infernos and we can only now begin to assess the scale of the damage, survivors looking to rebuild face a series of daunting obstacles and questions. After the most pressing issues are confronted – where to find food, shelter, and medical care – an even more enormous list of tasks begins to form: replacing identification, filing insurance claims, applying for unemployment benefits, and, of course, rebuilding.

The outpouring of support for the North Bay and Northern California residents affected has been heartening, and many organizations have stepped in to play their part in the response and recovery – including, notably, the legal services community. Alongside pro bono volunteers from across Northern California, legal services organizations are springing into action to provide free legal assistance to survivors of the fire and help navigate the maze of legal issues that have resulted. The role of legal services in the aftermath of disasters has been well-documented, including most recently in response to Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Maria. Vann Newkirk II writes in The Atlantic:

“People who flee can lose track of their mortgage payments and face foreclosure when they return. Evacuees from rental properties and apartments can face evictions, rising rents, and other challenges from unscrupulous landlords. In addition, people often lose vital documents…and without them might not be able to enroll their children in school or receive medical care. Those with few resources can face personal bankruptcies or even unlawful job terminations if they can’t make it back into work.”

Legal services organizations play an even more important role for the economically disadvantaged, many of whom already struggle with a variety of legal issues. In the wake of the fires, these needs have only increased.

How You Can Help

In the last two weeks, we have been in contact with the direct legal services organizations responding to the crisis, including Bay Area Legal Aid, Legal Aid of Sonoma County, Legal Services of Northern California, and California Rural Legal Assistance. We encourage you to donate to these organizations to expand their capacity to provide legal assistance to fire survivors.

We also encourage you to donate to Undocufund, which has been set up to provide relief for undocumented immigrants in Sonoma County affected by the fires. This fund is vital, because most undocumented immigrants are ineligible for FEMA disaster benefits and otherwise disadvantaged in accessing other disaster relief.

The California State Bar has also set up a legal hotline (415-575-3120) for affected residents. They also have provided information about finding an attorney, avoiding legal fraud, applying for federal aid, and more on their website.

Finally, OneJustice is maintaining a resource page for anyone interested in donating to the legal aid providers on the ground and for attorneys interested in providing pro bono assistance. This page will be updated as more information becomes available, so we encourage you to check this page for more information and updates as they become available!