News Archives - Community Legal Services

Community Legal Services and Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA) welcome three new members to overlapping Boards of Directors

*Highlights, NewsBy Julian Layton February 20, 2025

Community Legal Services and Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA) are thrilled to welcome three new members to our overlapping Boards of Directors. Diana Cortes, a partner at Morgan Lewis, is a longtime trial lawyer and former Philadelphia city solicitor/general counsel. Diana represents clients in crisis and complex litigation matters, including class actions and large group…

Striving to Center Dignity Through Language Justice

*Highlights, NewsBy Zakya Hall December 18, 2024

“Language justice goes beyond simply providing interpretation or translation. Language justice is about centering the dignity of those impacted,” writes Chi-Ser Tran, Supervising Attorney in the SSI Unit and Language Access Project at CLS. In this article, written for MIE, Chi-Ser shares her experience of caring for her father through an illness, describing how the…

Did Your Home Value Go Up? Here’s How to Make Your Property Tax Bill More Affordable

*Highlights, Housing, NewsBy Julian Layton August 7, 2024

Philadelphia just released new property assessments, which are used to calculate property tax bills. If your assessed value went up, your property taxes will, too. If you think your home’s assessment is too high, you should appeal right away. You can do that by requesting a “First Level Review” with the Office of Property Assessment…

New Report Shows Unintentional, Systemic Bias in Philadelphia Property Assessments

*Highlights, Housing, NewsBy Julian Layton April 26, 2024

New Report Shows Unintentional, Systemic Bias in Philadelphia Property Assessments Today, Community Legal Services of Philadelphia (CLS) announced the publication of a new report, “Examining the Accuracy, Uniformity & Equity of Philadelphia’s 2023 Real Estate Tax Assessments.” The report, commissioned by CLS, and researched and authored by the Reinvestment Fund, in partnership with CLS and…

CLS’S 35th Annual Bar Campaign is Live

*Highlights, NewsBy rachel March 26, 2024

This year ushers in the 35th anniversary for Community Legal Services’ Bar Campaign. That’s 35 years where Philadelphia area law firms have stood together to advance access to justice for our neighbors who are struggling to get by. 35 years is more than just a number; it’s an important milestone that demonstrates that Philadelphia’s entire…

New Report: Sealing Eviction Records for Housing Stability and Economic Prosperity

*Highlights, Housing, NewsBy Zakya Hall October 18, 2023

“It makes you feel defeated and hopeless. It’s like you feel stuck. You have no help and nowhere to turn to all because of something that happened years ago,” said Jennifer Lee, a mother of two who was evicted in 2015. Since the start of the pandemic, Pennsylvania landlords have filed more than 280,000 evictions.…

New Report: As Temperatures Rise, PA Must Expand LIHEAP to Cover Cooling Needs

*Highlights, News, UtilitiesBy Zakya Hall June 8, 2023

None of us can afford climate change, but the costs are even higher for Black and Brown people, cities, rural communities, and low-income families. PA must allocate permanent state supplemental funding to make LIHEAP available year round. Summer of 2022 was one of the hottest summers on record in Pennsylvania’s history, and temperatures will only…

City Expands Right to Counsel for Eligible Philadelphia Tenants into Two Additional Zip Codes

*Highlights, Housing, NewsBy admin January 26, 2023

Following the success of initial rollout, low-income tenants in 19134 and 19144 zip codes are now guaranteed legal representation when facing eviction PHILADELPHIA – Starting February 1, 2023, low-income renters in Philadelphia zip codes 19134 and 19144 are entitled to free legal representation if they are facing eviction. Legislation providing for guaranteed legal representation, known…

Why We’re Proud: New Video from CLS

*Highlights, Consumer Rights, Housing, NewsBy rachel December 21, 2022

This video gives you a glimpse into the work CLS’s staff attorneys, paralegals, social workers, and other advocates do every day so that people and their families in Philadelphia can access fundamental needs like housing, food, and employment. Hear from CLS advocates and clients about the lasting impact that CLS has had on them and…

Transition Paper: PA’s UC System Remains in Disarray and Is Not Prepared for a Recession.

*Highlights, Employment, NewsBy admin December 19, 2022

Pennsylvania’s UC System No Longer Can Be Relied Upon to Serve Unemployed Workers. Traditionally, Pennsylvania’s Unemployment Compensation (UC) system was simple and effective. An unemployed worker went to an “unemployment office,” filed a claim, and got about the business of finding a new job. As a result of declining administrative funding, that system started to…

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