May Newsletter

Thanking Our Volunteers

CLS’s Board of Directors and staff express our gratitude to everyone who attended our appreciation event for our Volunteer Attorneys at Franklins Restaurant on April 8, 2019.  It is because of our volunteers’ dedication and commitment to equal access to justice for all that CLS is able to deliver quality legal services to so many deserving income-eligible clients in Prince George’s County every year.

We thank our event sponsors Vigilante Coffee Co., Wood’s Flower and Gifts,  and Copper Canyon Grill for their generous support of this event to honor our Volunteers!  We give special thanks to Franklins Restaurant Brewery for donating to 20% of the  those who dinned at Franklins in support of CLS on the day of the event.

Special Thanks

We expressed our sincere gratitude to the Board of Directors of the Maryland Bar Foundation for its generous funding donation. The funding will help us publish our comprehensive Guide to Legal Services brochures, and make them available at our various office locations, to other nonprofit organizations and our county agencies.  The Guide to Legal Services is a popular resource  providing resources of local services.

Dine & Donate Fundraiser

Please support CLS by dinning at PIZZERIA PARADISO on Wednesday June 5, 2019 from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  CLS will receive 15% of the proceeds when you mention “CLS.”  Pizzeria Paradiso is located at 4800 Rhode Island Avenue, Hyattsville, MD 20781.  We hope to see you there!

You can support Community Legal Services when shopping through Amazon Smile! When you shop online using Amazon Smile, Amazon donates 0.5% of your purchase back to our organization. Start now by clicking the button below to designate Community Legal Services of Prince George’s County, Inc. as your chosen charitable organization.  AMAZON SMILE

Recruiting Out-of-State Volunteer Attorneys

CLS and other nonprofit legal services providers presented at the Department of Commerce, Office of the General Counsel’s Pro Bono Bono Brown Bag lunch on April 4, 2019. The event provided legal services providers volunteer opportunities available to government attorneys to do pro bono work in Maryland. Maryland allows out-of-state attorneys to volunteer for legal services providing assistance to low-income individuals, such as CLS.  The information was well received and many of the attorneys expressed enthusiasm for taking on cases.  We look forward to working with this new pool of volunteer attorneys.

Success Stories

This quarter our success stories included an approved loan modification for a client and a delayed eviction in a wrongful detainer action. We were able to assist a client in submitting and receiving a loan modification.  The proposed repayment plan was not affordable or sustainable for the client, so she declined it. However, she was able to request a mediation and will be represented by one of our pro bono attorneys. The client is still in her home and working on saving money to pay towards the arrearage amount.

The second success story involved a previous client who came in for brief legal advice the day before her court date. The new owner of the home filed a wrongful detainer action against the client and sought a judgment for possession.  The new homeowner was granted judgment for possession, but our staff attorney was able to get the Judge to stay the eviction proceedings for thirty days to give her additional time to move out.

Both clients were pleased with the service and advice received from our staff and expressed their gratitude for allowing them to extend their time in their homes.

Funding Available for Representation in Foreclosure Prevention

CLS has funding for attorneys representing clients in Prince George’s County through our Foreclosure Prevention Program.  CLS has expanded our Foreclosure Prevention project to provide paid hours to attorneys accepting cases for representation in foreclosure defense cases, post-foreclosure Motions for Surplus, tenants in foreclosures, as well foreclosure mediation.  In foreclosure prevention cases, the funding provides attorneys $80.00 an hour and up to thirty hours of representation. Funds include representation at judicial proceedings, mediation preparation, representation at mediation, and negotiations.  Additionally, funding is available for bankruptcy chapter 7, and other legal actions that may help the client save his home.  If you are interested in being added to our foreclosure volunteer attorney pool, or require additional information, please contact Michael Udejiofor at 240-391-6532, ext. 1 or udejiofor@clspgc.org.  Training, mentoring and malpractice insurance is provided.  Funding is available from a generous grant provided by Maryland Legal Services Corporation (MLSC).

CLS Monthly Foreclosure Prevention Training – Last Wednesday of Every Month

Our next monthly training will be held on Wednesday, March 24, 2019.  PLEASE NOTE the CHANGE IN TIME for this training.  It will start at 1:00 PM.  Our guest presenter will be Bud Stephen Tayman, Esq.  Please RSVP to Nora Eidelman at 240-391-6532, ext. 5 or eidelman@clspgc.org Trainings will be held at 6301 Ivy Lane, Suite 720, Greenbelt, MD.

Sign up to help families avoid wrongful evictions in our Failure to Pay Rent Tenant Representation Program. Training & Stipend is Available. 

CLS is seeking attorneys to provide same day representation to tenants in Prince George’s County Rent Court, located at Hyattsville District Court. CLS provides training, malpractice insurance coverage, mentoring, and support to our volunteers.  Out-of-state attorneys are welcomed.   Representing Tenants in Prince George’s County Rent Court training, in partnership with the Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland, is available on line at www.pbrc.org.  The training includes Landlord/Tenant rules and perspectives, issue spotting in Failure to Pay Rent complaints, and practical advice for handling cases.  If you wish to take this training or have questions about the program, please contact Kayla Williams, Esq. at  williams@clspgc.org.  Participating attorneys must commit to volunteer to staff two clinics or take two landlord/tenant cases within one year of completing the training. 

Beyond this volunteer commitment, a stipend of $100* will be provided to attorneys in exchange for their representation. *per docket. Funding for this program is provided by Maryland Legal Services Corporation (MLSC).

Civil Cases Available for Attorneys and Other Volunteer Opportunities

Through our Lawyer Referral Program, we refer income eligible clients to attorneys for representation in their domestic cases.  Judicare funding pays the attorneys’ fees.  Attorneys receive $100.00 per hour with a cap of $3,000 per case.  The billing process with CLS allows you to bill twice during the life of the case.  MLSC reimburses CLS for your billed time.  As a result, a slight delay in Judicare payments should be anticipated.  This funding program is administered by the Maryland Legal Services Corporation (MLSC) with funds from the Administrative Office of the Courts.  For more information about MSLC and the Judicare program, please visit https://www.mlsc.org/.

 CLS’s domestic violence program places protective order and peace order petitioners and respondents with attorneys. A limited funding of up to $500 per case is available for attorneys providing representation in these cases. 

CLS encourages attorneys to take pro bono cases. CLS has requests for landlord tenant attorneys, wills attorneys, and attorneys for additional civil legal cases. CLS can place cases with attorneys based on the attorney’s preferred case type.

CLS also has volunteer opportunities at our Brief Advice clinics. Expand and grow your practice by volunteering around your schedule.  

CLS clients have limited means but have real legal issues that require representation. Help CLS bridge the Access to Justice Gap by taking Judicare or Pro bono cases. CLS provides our volunteer attorneys training, mentoring, access to a litigation fund, monthly practitioner’s clinics, and malpractice insurance.  To learn more about our opportunities, please contact Nora C. Eidelman, at 240-391-6532, ext. 5.

Community Legal Services of Prince George’s County, Inc. (CLS) is a non-profit organization established to provide quality civil legal services to low-income residents of Prince George’s County.  CLS provides direct legal services through the generous contributions by members of the private bar.  Additionally, CLS operates free Brief Advice Clinics throughout the County, including in the Prince George’s County Circuit Court, Room 2435 M, the Prince George’s County Multi-Services Center in Langley Park, and in Suitland’s Windsor Crossings Apartments.  For referrals of low-income residents of Prince George’s County to CLS programs, our hotline is 240-391-6370. Intake is Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm., online applications are available at www.clspgc.org. For more information about our services, please contact Nora C. Eidelman, at 240-391-6532, ext. 5.