Eligible residents must live in Raleigh and be at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.
In May, the Raleigh City Council voted to give the law school $100,000 a year for three years from the American Rescue Plan Act. With this funding, the Clinic has founded the City of Raleigh Housing Justice Project, allowing it to provide advice and counsel as well as legal representation to eligible Raleigh residents facing eviction.
Since then, the Clinic has hired attorney Laura Clark as a part-time adjunct professor to screen applicants, provide brief legal advice when appropriate and assist Clinic Professor Tolu Adewale with supervising the students who will be providing select clients with in-depth representation on their landlord/tenant matters, explained Interim Clinic Director Emily Mistr.
A formal ribbon cutting will be held Tuesday, Sept. 6, at 11 a.m. at the clinic in recognition of the law school’s partnership with the city on this project.
The Clinic started taking applications from potential clients on Aug. 15. Those interested in applying for help can call the Clinic at (919) 865-4471 between 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The Clinic is also taking direct referrals from local community organizations. Service providers are encouraged to contact Professor Adewale at (919) 865-4467 with questions or referrals.
“We want to be clear, this is NOT a service that can help individuals pay their rent that is past due or help them find immediate housing,” Mistr emphasized.
Law School Dean J. Rich Leonard, who presented the partnership proposal during the May 3 city council meeting, said the funding will expand the Clinic’s work to include housing issues, especially eviction defense.
“This is the sort of partnership that only can happen because the law school is in downtown Raleigh,” Leonard said. “It is a remarkable opportunity to provide desperately needed services to Raleigh residents, while at the same time imparting valuable advocacy skills to our students in an important substantive area.”
Blanchard Community Law Clinic provides legal services for low-income individuals from across the state of North Carolina and has served more than 1,200 clients since opening in 2016. According to Leonard, 136 law students have been trained at the clinic in the past five years.
ABOUT CAMPBELL LAW
Since its founding in 1976, Campbell Law has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion, and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. In 2021, Campbell Law celebrated 45 years of graduating legal leaders and 12 years of being in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina’s Capital City.