Access Justice Brooklyn

We provide assistance throughout the whole foreclosure process, including foreclosure motion practice, good faith hearings, foreclosure defense litigation, preparing and negotiating loan modifications, and settlement conferences in Kings County Supreme Court.

In addition to foreclosures, we address a range of other homeowner concerns through quiet titles, partitions, and bankruptcy and provide assistance in deed theft cases and reverse mortgages, matters of particular concern for senior homeowners. In all of these areas, we provide legal education virtually as well as through senior centers and other community partners to help Brooklyn residents identify and avoid predatory scams, abusive lending practices, and other threats to homeownership.

Access Justice Brooklyn assists individuals and families by offering legal assistance in family court matters. We represent clients in custody and visitation cases by appearing with them in court and/or offering advice and counsel. Through our child and spousal support practice, we assist both custodial and non-custodial parents to ensure fairness and equity in support orders granted by the Kings County Family Court.

Since January 2009, Access Justice Brooklyn has assisted parents or other family members with obtaining guardianship of a person with an intellectual or developmental disability. In New York State, parents or guardians of persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities are considered the natural guardians of their children until their 18th birthday. If an individual, as a legal adult, is not able to manage on their own, however, a parent or other family member must obtain legal guardianship under Article 17A of the Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act (SCPA).

We assist in re-ordering finances through Chapter 7 bankruptcy petitions, and we represent people facing insurmountable debt due to job loss, a family crisis, or serious medical problems.

Consumer bankruptcy protection is often chosen as a last resort by individuals and families facing insurmountable debt after trying to cope with job loss, a family crisis, or serious medical problems. Access Justice Brooklyn volunteer attorneys assist individuals who need to re-order their finances by drafting bankruptcy petitions and by representing them in Chapter 7 proceedings in the United States Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of New York.

The Civil Legal Advice and Resource Office (CLARO) is a service where unrepresented consumers can obtain free information about debt collection matters. Brooklyn’s CLARO program is a joint project of Access Justice Brooklyn and Brooklyn Law School, with the collaboration of Mobilization for Justice and the New Economy Project. It was created in cooperation with Kings County Civil Court to address the needs of unrepresented consumer debt litigants.

Since 1999, Access Justice Brooklyn has provided accessible community legal education specifically for older Brooklyn residents, focusing on legal issues of concern for seniors such as wills and health care proxies; consumer debt; and foreclosure, reverse mortgages, and deed theft. These services help older Brooklyn residents – and by extension, their families – feel financially stable, retain ownership of their homes, and safely remain in their communities. We are proud to support Brooklyn seniors with our National Grid Foundation Senior Legal Education Program, made possible with generous support from the National Grid Foundation.

Our staff and volunteers visit senior and community centers and faith-based organizations across Brooklyn or virtually via remote platforms, providing free presentations and FAQ sessions about the importance of: Wills, power of attorney, and healthcare proxies; foreclosure, deed theft, and home repair scams; and consumer debt and debt collection.

After each presentation, a question-and-answer session identifies other areas of concern to seniors. Seniors who have specific legal issues and meet our financial eligibility criteria may also make follow-up appointments for individual assistance.

Assistance with estate planning, advance directives and wills is among the core services that Access Justice Brooklyn has provided for over 20 years and remains a central component of our work today. In addition, we provide direct assistance with probate matters for small estates ($50,000 or less) – a service we began offering in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While life planning documents are essential to ensuring that wishes regarding personal assets and medical care are followed, an estimated 1 in 3 people do not have estate plans.

Our staff and pro bono volunteer attorneys provide accessible, free assistance with creating wills and designating power of attorney, emphasizing that a low income should not prevent individuals from the dignity of future arrangements. These important life planning documents allow individuals to choose the family members and/or friends they trust to manage their affairs and make important decisions on their behalf, giving Brooklynites and their families greater long-term stability and peace of mind.

In partnership with CUNY Citizenship Now!, NALEO Educational Fund, and other organizations, Access Justice Brooklyn provides critical assistance to immigrants and other foreign-born New Yorkers. This includes assisting parents with emergency planning if they are detained or deported, helping individuals’ complete naturalization papers, and organizing trainings on immigration law for volunteer attorneys.