Underserved, Unrepresented, and Eventually Unhoused

BY KARINA GARZA

Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas (VLS)’s Eviction Task Force provides life-changing representation to tenants who appear at court expecting to lose their homes.

THE NUMBERS

Over 90% of tenants facing eviction arrive to their hearing unrepresented. Their fate is often decided within 10 minutes or less. Even the term “unrepresented” seems to suggest that the norm in eviction hearings is that tenants have legal counsel. (This also assumes that our neighbors are even aware that they are meant to attend docket, but that is neither here nor there.) According to the Child Poverty Action Lab, eviction cases were decided in favor of the landlord in 80% of cases and in favor of the tenant in 2% of cases. While this data is for Dallas counties, VLS’s own data here in Travis County seems to suggest a similar nightmare. When we look at statistics compiled by the Texas Access to Justice Foundation, we see that “there is approximately one legal aid lawyer for every 7,000 Texans who qualify.”

Your firm can be an assembly of advocates. We know that housing costs will continue to exponentially outpace wages, and that affordable housing waitlists will never shorten.

How did we get here? How is it possible that an attorney simply being present during a Zoom hearing or physically at court means that eviction cases no longer favor landlords? Mark Melton out of Dallas asks how the legal system can even call this “constitutionally sufficient due process.” Short answer: It isn’t. Many in the legal community here in Texas are working to fix this injustice at the systemic level, guaranteeing that due process is the norm for tenants, regardless of socioeconomic status. But that is not enough. Systemic change is slow and arduous. Who will advocate for the folks being evicted today, tomorrow, next week?

ACTION ITEMS

VLS’s Eviction Task Force is in its infancy, existing only since 2021, yet the program has already seen an 80% success rate. Jackson Walker partner and VLS board member Marilyn Brown shared that “the impact on the individual people we have been able to represent cannot be overstated. ... The VLS Eviction Taskforce also encourages all landlords to ensure they are following the appropriate steps before seeking to evict someone from their home.”

A rigged and losing game seems less so when all persons—especially underserved, underpaid, and unrepresented persons—have an advocate. “People are more willing to stand up for their rights when they have a professional on their side,” observed Scott W. Weatherford, partner at Jackson Walker. You can be that advocate. Your firm can be an assembly of advocates. We know that housing costs will continue to exponentially outpace wages, and that affordable housing waitlists will never shorten. Will you, today, personally ensure that our Central Texan neighbors have access to equal justice during the most challenging periods of their lives?

THE NITTY GRITTY OF EVICTION DOCKET

You’re fired up and ready to help. How do you join the Task Force?

1. Sign up for a docket shift at VLS’s volunteer portal, Volunteer Hub. Sign up or log in at vls.volunteerhub.com.

Current docket schedule as of September 2022:

• JP5: Mondays, 8:30 a.m. via Zoom

• JP2: Wednesdays, 9 a.m. via Zoom

• JP1: Thursdays, 10 a.m. in person

2. Appear at docket! In total, you will appear for 90 to 120 minutes. VLS handles intake, eligibility requirements, and the Professional Service Agreement (PSA).

3. Hold an attorney/client meeting.

4. Request a continuance, if possible. You’ve met your client 30 minutes ago—most judges will grant this request.

5. Settle or prep for trial—no more than 5-10 attorney hours.

Jackson Walker attorneys shared their experiences with me—these anecdotes range from the very first days of the task force to the present, as Jackson Walker was the first firm to commit to regular docket appearances. As associate Lindsay Killeen explains, “You are able to make a huge impact on the case right away and are empowered by VLS to hit the ground running.” Brown adds, “It’s a short fuse to get the immediately necessary papers filed but VLS has fantastic forms and a robust intake process. ... The time commitment is low and the clients are so appreciative.”

Have a group of colleagues fired up and ready to help? Your firm can “sponsor” a docket day. The firms and organizations listed later in this article have already committed. Will your firm join them?

THE BENEFITS FOR YOU

• Incredible trial experience.

• Face time with judges in court.

• Camaraderie with colleagues.

• 80% of the time, you are keeping a community member housed.

At the very least, you are ensuring due process by providing a person with their day in court.

Hear more about the benefits to firms and individual attorneys from Jackson Walker attorneys:

“You are working directly with the client, running hearings and getting great experience. I got to try a case for the VLS eviction docket as a third-year lawyer.” – Lindsay Killeen

“In a practice area where cases may take many months or even years to resolve, it is very satisfying to have such an immediate and tangible impact on a client’s life.” – Marilyn Brown

“Volunteering for the docket has been good for getting our younger attorneys experience in front of local judges and has been a nice thing personally to give back to the community in a tangible way… but getting the firm involved in the eviction docket has also been a nice reality check to see how many people in our litigation section are willing to step up and help people in need.”– Jack Skaggs, partner

FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT

Advocate with VLS and keep our neighbors housed together, as a firm or organization.

NOW is the time to join the assembly of Austin’s top law firms and organizations that have already committed to our Eviction Task Force:

• Jackson Walker, LLP

• Austin Corporate Counsel

• Dell, Inc.

• DLA Piper

• Holland & Knight, LLP

• Pirkey Barber PLLC

Contact VLS’s Director of Pro Bono Services, Hollie Toups, at htoups@vlsoct.org today.

Visit our Volunteer Hub portal at vls.volunteerhub.com or scan the above QR code:

Karina Garza is the development and communications coordinator for Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas. Well versed in government and nonprofit arenas, she has worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Migrant and Community Action Project in St. Louis, Mo.