A Guide to Bay Area Legal Aid
For more than 90 years, Bay Area Legal Aid (BayLegal) has worked to improve the lives of low-income residents of the Bay Area by providing a broad range of free legal services to those in need. BayLegal advocates for social and economic justice on behalf of low-income individuals and families, securing housing stability, remedying unsafe housing conditions, gaining quality healthcare and supporting economic advancement by removing barriers to employment. BayLegal plays an invaluable role by meeting the urgent legal needs of low-income communities to which no other legal services resources are available. Our providers offer holistic services and community education, navigating the underlying issues that contribute to poverty, including homelessness, inadequate housing conditions, health care disparities, food insecurity and financial distress .
The organization was established in 1939 as the Monterey Legal Aid Society by Lillian Smith and Alice Blethen, who established free legal services for the poor in coastal Monterey County. Their work expanded to include the San Francisco Bay Area. In 1941, the agency’s name changed to the Bay Area Legal Aid Society. By the mid-1980s, there were 10 local legal aid organizations in the Bay Area, referring cases to each other and collaborating to serve local communities. In 1994, these organizations merged into a central organization now known as Bay Area Legal Aid. Today, we are the largest nonprofit providing free civil legal services in the greater Bay Area through our offices in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Marin, Napa, Santa Clara and Solano counties.
The Legal Advice Line Explained
The Bay Area Legal Aid Legal Advice Line (LAL) offers legal assistance to eligible callers, connecting them with the appropriate legal support so that they may make informed decisions about their legal matters. Callers are screened for eligibility and sent to first available staff attorneys or law clerks in the order they call in.
Current and eligible callers will be serviced on a same-day basis if our LAL staff is available. If the call is received toward the end of our business hours, the caller will be scheduled for a callback the next business day. Clients are helped on a first-come first-served basis.
We serve low-income individuals living in San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin, and the Santa Clara counties, regardless of immigration status. Eligible callers include individuals who need legal assistance or information resulting from financial distress. We do not have attorneys with expertise in every area of the law, but we have attorneys knowledgeable in most common legal issues and can refer callers to other agencies if needed.
The LAL offices are located at Bay Area Legal Aid (454 Shotwell St., SF), Contra Costa Senior Legal Services (550 Ellinwood Way, Pleasant Hill) and their phone lines are generally open 9AM-5PM Monday through Thursday and 9AM-4:30PM on Fridays excluding holidays.
Types of Issues Covered
Bay Area Legal Aid Legal Advice Line can assist with a variety of different legal issues to help protect the rights and claims of callers. Some of the most common issues that they handle include:
Housing
The Housing program addresses issues such as uninhabitable rental conditions, overcharging of tenants for housing costs, wrongful evictions, illegal rent increases, and Ellis Act eviction proceedings.
Domestic Violence
The Domestic Violence program assists individuals with obtaining Restraining Orders, Temporary Restraining Orders, Child Custody and Visitation, and the Enforcement of Protective Orders.
Consumer
One of the more popular programs offered, Bay Area Legal Aid’s Consumer practice is made available through the advice line to assist with issues regarding Car Dealerships, Collection agencies, Credit Reporting agencies, Repossession, Mortgages, Bankruptcy, Public Records Lawsuit Defense, and Real Estate Transactions.
How to Dial Into the Legal Advice Line
The California State Bar refers individuals to Bay Area Legal Aid Legal Advice Line: 1-800-551-5554, which is BayLegal’s legal hotline for residents of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties. Individuals with court cases or who have a legal emergency will be prioritized. Individuals who have general legal questions, non-urgent advice or brief legal information may be referred to an in-person advice clinic.
The Bay Area Legal Advice Line provides free legal consultations to individuals including:
Business Law (General Business Law, Employment, Nonprofit)
Consumer Law (Bankruptcy, Collection Cases, Debt Claims, Default Judgment Issues, Garnishments, Paid Off, Secured Loans, Security Deposits, Warranty)
Discrimination
Elder Abuse
Estates/Probate/Wills
Family Law (Custody, Divorce, Division of assets, Paternity, Spousal maintenance)
Health Consumer Issues (Medical Debt, Medi-Medi Transfers)
Immigration
Landlord/Tenant (Discrimination, Eviction Defense)
Miscellaneous (Appeals, Contracts, Guardianship, Privacy Laws, Prison Law)
Public Benefits (Child Care, CalWorks, Food Stamps, Health Care, Sufficiency of benefits,; SSI/SSP, Social Security Disability, Unemployment)
Criminal Record Expungement
Workers’ Compensation
Individuals can access the Legal Advice Line by calling Bay Area Legal Aid for legal assistance at 800-551-5554.
Success or Testimonials of Previous Clients
In the short time the Legal Advice Line has operated, it has had a significant impact on improving access to justice for low-income residents of the Bay Area. Since its launch in April 2016, it has fielded over 800 calls for service and assisted hundreds of Bay Area residents. Feedback from callers tells the story: "The Legal Advice Line is the only program I have found that connects me with a knowledgeable attorney who takes time to explain and offer solutions to my legal issues." – L. G. , Santa Clara County resident; "The attorney did a great job of listening before he started giving me legal advice. He never rushed me and I was able to present all my questions and issues with confidence that he was paying attention to my questions." – T. M., Santa Clara County resident; "I had a great experience with the attorney. He was extremely patient and respectful and his guidance helped a lot." – H. M., San Mateo County resident.
Other Resources Available from Bay Area Legal Aid
Bay Area Legal Aid provides a number of other services and programs which may be of interest to callers of the Legal Advice Line. The Bay Area Legal Aid housing program gives free legal advice over the phone and in person to tenants, low income renters and homeowners. They host weekly housing clinics and have a number of community-based staff attorneys who may be able to help you. Their Family Law program helps provide free legal representation for single parents seeking child support. They also offer trainings and information on how to get child support for individuals who are not eligible for free representation. The Debt and Consumer program offers training, legal advice and support to inmates during monthly clinics at the jail, as well as low income debtors and consumers with conflicts involving phone, internet, cable or other service providers. Their Immigration program offers legal advice and assistance to immigrants in need. The veterans program provides support and legal representation to veterans in a variety of areas, including VA benefits, family law and bankruptcy. The homelessness outreach program connects individuals experiencing homelessness with legal advocates through legal clinics, public benefits screenings and by providing guidance to our legal services partners.
Support and Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteering and Supporting Bay Area Legal Aid
Several opportunities exist for local attorneys and interested community members to volunteer for Bay Area Legal Aid. We are always looking for attorneys to help with our legal advice clinics and for experienced practitioners and specialists to join our longstanding volunteer panels for Family Law, Consumer & Mortgage, and Private Attorney Involvement. Bay Area Legal Aid also recruits long-time volunteers for our Court Appointed Advocates program in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin and San Mateo counties. Volunteer attorneys can gain precious experience through full representation cases and donators of financial resources and in-kind services further strengthen and support Bay Area Legal Aid .
Attorneys can help out by volunteering at our various County Partner Sites or subject matter clinics, telephone legal advice clinics, and by taking a pro bono full-representation case. Sign up here.
Our volunteers frequently remind us that working for Bay Area Legal Aid is one of the most satisfying experiences in their professional lives, as they apply their knowledge and skills to travails that people may face only once during their lives, in circumstances of great vulnerability when they can choose from no other option than representing themselves in court or facing evictions, foreclosures, loan modifications, debt collections, fair housing issues, domestic violence, guardianships, conservatorships, and public benefit eligibility issues.