Help Wanted You Can Make a Difference by Volunteering to Represent Tenants Facing Eviction BY BILL CHRISTIAN
Bill Christian is an attorney at Graves Dougherty Hearon & Moody and cochair of the Pro Bono Committee of the Austin Bar Association.
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f you’re looking for a pro bono opportunity where your work contributes to immediate change in the community, then you should consider the Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas (VLS) Eviction Docket Program. This volunteer opportunity offers a chance to do high-impact work in cases that do not require an extensive time commitment and with plenty of help from VLS. VLS’s Eviction Docket Program serves low-income tenants facing eviction in Travis County JP courts by matching tenants, over Zoom, with volunteer attorneys. There is currently a “huge need” for attorneys to volunteer to help with the program, according to Carl Guthrie, the housing stability staff attorney at VLS. The need for lawyers stems from a recent rise in eviction filings, as various measures to prevent evictions during the pandemic expire. Over the course of the pandemic, residential evictions were suspended or limited by the CARES Act, emergency orders from the Texas Supreme Court, or executive decrees by local governments. In addition, the Texas Supreme Court and the 30
AUSTINLAWYER | MARCH 2022
can also avoid the stigma of an eviction on someone’s record, thus protecting a tenant’s ability to rent in the future. Marc Vockell, Assistant General Counsel for the University of Texas System, is another local attorney who has agreed to volunteer on a regular basis. He says the program is a good opportunity for younger lawyers to gain valuable experience because you get time before a judge and get to work one-on-one with a client. No prior experience with landlord-tenant law is necessary. Attorneys who commit to the program have access to eviction-law materials available on demand, and a VLS staff attorney is present at every Zoom eviction VLS’s Eviction Docket Program serves docket to assist. “You’re going to be a little uncomfortable at first low-income tenants facing eviction in doing something new—that’s part Travis County JP courts by matching them, of being a lawyer,” says Vockell. “But VLS staff is there to help over Zoom, with volunteer attorneys. you every step of the way.” In a recent opinion piece in Texas Department of Housing advice and representation in the The New York Times titled “It and Community Affairs instituteviction proceeding. Everything Should Take More Than 10 ed a statewide “eviction diversion takes place over Zoom, including Minutes to Evict Someone,” program” to provide rental and any court appearances. Chief Justice Hecht of the utility financial assistance to Abby Griffith, a lawyer at Texas Supreme Court praised eligible tenants and landlords. Jackson Walker, has been a the eviction reforms that were These extraordinary measures to volunteer with the Eviction introduced over the course of the reduce the number of evictions Docket Program since it first pandemic. He expressed the hope during the pandemic have ended formed early in the pandemic. that these reforms could outlast or are expected to end by March Last autumn, when VLS sought the pandemic, in order to achieve 1. As a result, the number of law firms to agree to provide “a common goal: to create an opeviction cases have already begun volunteers on a regular basis, she portunity for all litigants—tenants to climb, leaving many Central helped coordinate a group of ten and landlords—to have the time Texans in danger of losing their Jackson Walker attorneys, who and resources to resolve their homes and unable to afford the have agreed to provide at least housing problems in the least services of a lawyer to represent three lawyers to staff an eviction harmful way possible.” Lawyers them. docket on a regular basis. Griffith can help achieve that goal by Through the program, volreports that the eviction cases volunteering to represent tenants unteer lawyers appear by Zoom resolve quickly, within a week or in the VLS Eviction Docket for the eviction docket of one of two, and almost all by settlement. Program. To sign up, e-mail Carl the local justices of the peace. And no matter how brief, an atGuthrie (VLS housing stability A defendant facing eviction torney’s representation can make attorney) at cguthrie@vlsoct. AUSTINstaff LAWYER Aorg. L AL who appears pro se, wants the a significant impact. Just slowing assistance of a lawyer, and meets the eviction process down can the program’s financial eligibilbe a huge benefit for a tenant, ity guidelines is matched with allowing a few crucial days to find a volunteer attorney to provide alternative housing. A settlement
