Cleveland City Council President Kevin Kelley to Pursue Plan to Provide Lawyers for Impoverished Tenants Fighting Eviction 

"CLEVELAND, Ohio – City Council President Kevin Kelley expects within weeks to introduce legislation that would provide lawyers free of charge to impoverished tenants facing eviction.

Kelley told cleveland.com editors and reporters on Wednesday that the effort likely would be phased in, starting small and then building. The city has yet to determine how to fund the program.

“The moral case has been made,” Kelley said, but noted that he wants to find a revenue source that will make the program sustainable.

The legislation is the result of months of planning and research by the Housing Justice Alliance, a panel that includes Kelley and others on City Council, the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association and Cleveland Academy of Trial Attorneys.

Supporters say it would ultimately ease stress on social services and improve quality of life..."

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