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Tenants Are Finally Getting the Right to an Attorney in Housing Court

Friday, July 21, 2017

Tenants Are Finally Getting the Right to an Attorney in Housing Court

 

"In what tenant advocates call a “huge victory,” the City Council passed long-awaited legislation yesterday that will guarantee low-income tenants facing eviction in Housing Court the right to a city-funded lawyer.

The bill, first introduced in 2014 and passed by a 42-3 vote, will fund legal representation for tenants making less than twice the federal poverty level, currently $24,120 for a single person and $49,200 for a family of four. It will launch first in ten to fifteen zip codes around the five boroughs and expand to cover the full city over the next five years."

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